Locker Partners
by Snug-Tug-Chicada
Summary: AU Kagome is a junior in high school, and with her best friends at her side, she's ready for whatever comes her way. But when she realizes she has been assigned to share her locker with her least favorite person, Inuyasha, she finds herself in a pickle which extends beyond the school campus.
1. Conflicts

A/N: 2010: Whoa, kay, I've edited this chapter. Some of it is mostly minor. You don't have to re read this, but I think it's less… Cartoonish.

Fortunately, I do _not _own Inuyasha.

And I can't seem to get the page breakers to stay in the document when I submit it, so breaks will be marked by a set of bold 0's.

**0000**

**Locker Partners**

**Chapter One**

**Conflicts**

Kagome Higurashi lay on her stomach on her bed, flipping through her tenth grade year book and twirling her hair around her finger. Her feet swayed back and forth as she turned from page to page, singing along with her music. She turned to the page where Yuka, her best friend, sat smiling up at her.

Singing freely, and almost obnoxiously, she looked around the rest of the page and spotted her other best friend, Sango, posing for her picture. They looked so young, and all it took was a year to change.

She thought back on how she met Sango, and she smiled. It was last year, her first year of high school, that she met her new best friend. They ended up sharing lockers. In her high school, locker partners were not chosen by students, despite their abundant protest. Instead, each were assigned a locker along with another random student with whom he or she would share the locker for the full year. Kagome and Sango just so happened to get the same locker, and they immediately became the best of friends. Kagome couldn't wait to meet her new partner for this year.

She turned to the next page.

There he was; the most popular guy throughout her entire school: Inuyasha.

Kagome rolled her eyes at the thought of him. He was Kagome's age and yet within a few months of 10th grade he was known as the hunk of the school. Every girl wanted to date him, and every guy wanted to be his best friend. Pathetic. Kagome and Sango seemed to be the only sane girls in their grade. Even Yuka drooled over him. Kagome and Sango, however, knew the real Inuyasha, and were the least bit impressed.

"He's not that cute," Kagome mumbled to herself, scowling at Inuyasha's picture. "I mean his hair is silver, for goodness sake. Like an old man's. . ." She turned the page and sang along with the next song on her CD.

From downstairs, her mom called to her. Kagome paused her CD, opened her door, and hollered down the stairs, "Yes, Mom?"

"You have a letter!" her mom replied. "It's from your school!"

Kagome skipped down the stairs and tore open the letter which contained her schedule: first period was Trigonometry, second period was World History, third was Gym, fourth was Literature, fifth period was French, and sixth was Physics.

The letter also told which lunch fit into her schedule and what her locker number was.

"Hey, look Mom," Kagome chirped, "I got French, just like I wanted! This year is going to be fantastic!"

**0000**

"Oh no! Your locker number is 1147?"

Kagome slumped down onto her bed as she spoke with Sango over the phone. She looked back down her list and replied to Sango, "Yeah. Why? Which locker did you get?"

"I got. . . 3284," Sango mumbled over the other line. She sounded really disappointed.

"Geez, we aren't even in the same hall." Kagome frowned. "It's okay though, we can still see each other at class, right? When do you have gym class?"

There was a few seconds of silence, then Sango answered, "Um. . .third. What about you?"

"Oh same here! What else have you got?"

They exchanged schedule information, and it turned out that they had Trigonometry, Gym, and Literature classes together, along with the same lunch.

"Have you talked to Yuka yet?" Kagome asked.

"Yeah," Sango sighed. "She's not your locker partner, and she's not mine either. I think she said that her locker number is. . . 1200 or something like that. It looks like we'll be having new partners this year. I bet Yuka is praying that she gets Inuyasha."

The girls giggled.

"Yeah, I bet she is," agreed Kagome. She sighed before changing the subject. "Wow, only a week left of freedom. I'm excited, but at the same time disappointed. No more staying up or sleeping in late."

Kagome could hear the smile in Sango's voice. "Yeah, but think of it as a privilege. Once we start our careers, we can't stay home when we feel like it or we'll be fired. And besides, we always meet new people at school and have more friends." There was a pause. "I can't wait to go back next week."

There was silence over the phone as Kagome pondered locker partners. What if Yuka actually did get Inuyasha? Would they all suddenly become friends?

"Hey, Sango?" Kagome broke the silence.

"Mm-yes?" Sango hummed.

"Do you think Yuka could actually get Inuyasha as a locker buddy? Would fate be that nice to her?"

Sango laughed. "I dunno. Would that bother you?"

She scoffed in response. "Well, no, I was just wondering if the world would be so kind to her. Though I doubt she would ever get him." She fiddled with the seam on her sweatpants.

Sango snickered. "She'd probably faint at the sight of him. She wouldn't even know what to say to him." Her tone tingled with bitterness. "She thinks he's famous or something. Like the Pope."

"But isn't that why she's our friend?"

"You mean because she's naive and gullible?"

They laughed again. Sango was right. Maybe this year wouldn't be so bad after all.

**0000**

The shirtless Inuyasha hauled his new chain saw across his friend's yard and to his old-fashioned beat up wagon. He put the saw in place and started it, his muscles flexing. Just as he was ready to destroy that horrible piece of crap that was supposedly art, he heard his friend's horrified shouts behind him.

"WHAO WHAO WHAO!" his best friend, Miroku, panicked. Inuyasha turned to face him and shut off the saw. Miroku continued, "What are you doing?"

Inuyasha swung the saw over his shoulder and held it by the handle. "I thought I'd get rid of this piece of junk for ya." He gestured to the wagon.

"No, no. This piece of 'junk' is my mother's antique."

"But you were just complaining about it last week! I needed something to cut up, so I thought I'd do you a favor."

"Well this-" he shot his finger at the wagon-"you don't touch."

With his free hand, Inuyasha reached over and poked the wagon.

Miroku rolled his eyes. "You sarcastic bastard."

Inuyasha laughed. "So now I'm a sarcastic bastard? Hey, I'm improving! Yesterday I was a sarcastic jackass." He shoved his fist in the air to congratulate himself half-heartedly, with a mocking grin on his lips.

"You never give up, do you?"

"Yeah…no." He squinted from the sun.

Miroku sighed. "Destroy anything that's not my house or this wagon."

He nodded in approval. "Sweet. So I can trash your car?"

"_Inuyasha_!"

"Oh come on. You know I'm just messing around." He punched Miroku's arm. "Gosh, man, lighten up."

Miroku changed the subject. "So, could I have a go at it?" He stuck out his hand for the chain saw.

"Hell no! This is my birthday present! You don't get a turn till I've had my time to play."

"Speaking of playing. . ." he winked. "How's your sex life?"

Inuyasha glared at him with pursed lips. "Seriously? That's where your mind goes when I say 'play'?"

"Awe, don't tell me you don't have a thing going-"

"Hey, bud, I'm not like you, remember? I don't go around harassing every girl I see."

Only slightly offended, Miroku continued, "I know, but you have Kikyo, don't you?"

"So, does that mean I harass her?"

Now increasingly offended, he growled, "Alright, give me that chain saw!"

Inuyasha walked backwards as Miroku tried taking the saw. "No, it's mine! All mine, you can't have it!"

"You half breed!"

"HA HA! Try and catch me!" Inuyasha turned and jogged across the yard. After all, he was faster than anyone else on the soccer team, and running fast would just be plain cruel to poor Miroku.

Miroku sprinted after him. "You-know-I-can't-keep up-with you!"

Inuyasha stopped two yards in front of Miroku's willow tree and turned to face him. "I know." He started up the chain saw; Miroku stopped chasing after him. "And that, my good friend, is why I enjoy tormenting you."

Miroku gaped in horror as Inuyasha lifted the saw. "No! Don't you do it! STAY AWAY FROM THAT TREE!"

Too late. Inuyasha lifted the saw and swung it; the tree collapsing in one sweep.

Inuyasha was just downright proud of himself. He shut off the saw and threw it to the ground like a football player after a touchdown. "All right! That was awesome!" He spun around and shook his hips in a happy dance.

Miroku stood there, dumbfounded at his huge, once beautiful willow tree, lying pathetically dead in his lawn.

"Mom's gonna kill me. . ."

**0000**

Two days before school started, Sango and Kagome decided to go on a last-minute shopping spree.

"Mom's going to drop us off," Kagome informed Sango over the phone, "and then she's gonna pick us up at four." She rummaged through her closet to find an outfit. "Yuka has all her stuff already and she said she wanted to come, but her mom said she had things to do around the house."

"Oh okay. Hey, wanna go to WacDonald's before we shop?" Sango asked.

"Uh, sure. Just let me ask my mom before we leave."

"Okay, well I have to go. Gotta take out the trash and wash dishes really quick."

"Kay." Kagome grabbed the first dress that she saw. "We'll pick you up in a half an hour."

"Alrighty. See ya!"

"Sayonara!"

Click.

Kagome examined her baby-blue sundress. It was perfect. She pulled out her light blue sandals and a white button-over T-shirt.

She was really going to miss her vacation.

**0000**

"Oh no…"

Kagome slammed her forehead on the table with a groan.

"What?" Sango asked.

"Look behind you. . ." grumbled Kagome.

Sango turned around. A few tables behind her and to her right sat Inuyasha with all his friends. Sango huffed and mimicked Kagome.

"Why couldn't he have come here at a different time?" Kagome moaned. She looked up at her friend with sorrowful eyes.

Sango stared back at her friend. "We'll just eat our food and pretend he doesn't exist."

"Deal."

Kagome lifted her spoon and took a bite of her chocolate ice cream. She scooped up another bite and leaned into eat it when temptation took over. She glanced up at Inuyasha and let her spoon fall back into her bowl. Why couldn't she have kept to herself?

"Sango, I fought curiosity," Kagome grumbled, "and curiosity won. Look at him, practically eating Kikyo."

Sango peeked over her shoulder.

Inuyasha had his arm around Kikyo's shoulders, kissing every inch of her from her lips to her collar bone.

Sango rolled her eyes back to Kagome. "That's sick. Though I guess they're a perfect couple; they're both sluts."

"Uh oh… Sango," Kagome whimpered. Her eyes were still fixed on Inuyasha's gang.

"What?" Sango whipped her head in Inuyasha's direction. Soon she'd have whiplash.

Miroku was nudging one of his friends, Zen, and pointing to Sango and Kagome. Zen turned around and looked at the two girls with his reddish-brown eyes. Then Miroku said something to him, and the two boys stood up and walked toward Kagome and Sango.

"Hey ladies," Miroku smirked.

"What were you gawking at?" Zen snapped.

"Gawking?" Kagome growled. "We weren't gawking at anyone. We were just wondering if Inuyasha ever has a full stomach, since he's always gnawing on Kikyo."

One of Zen's eyes narrowed under the pressure of a scrunched eyebrow as he gave a quizzical stare to Kagome, and mouthed, "Wha?" Kagome shrugged and ate another scoop of ice cream.

Miroku leaned on his elbows on the table in front of Sango. "So, babe, how are you doing?"

Sango grabbed her soda in her left hand and stood up in front of Miroku, forcing him to stand with her. With gritted teeth, she rubbed up against him, pulled his jeans out, and poured her soda down his pants. Miroku's eyes widened as a shiver crept up his spine.

"Actually," Sango replied, smashing her empty can against his chest and smiling pleasantly, "my day just got a little bit brighter." She walked around him and threw her can over her shoulder, the tin hitting him in the back of his head and bouncing to the floor.

Miroku stood there, bewildered and frozen to the spot.

A sudden rush of adrenaline kicked in, and Kagome felt the need to join in the torment. So, she stood, scooped the ice cream in her hand, and shoved it in Zen's face. She wiped her hands clean on his shirt and followed Sango out of the restaurant.

Inuyasha and the rest of his friends stared wide-eyed at the scene before them. Inuyasha's jaw dropped and the corners turned into a grin. Wiggling his way out of the booth, he trudged over to Miroku, who was still glued to the floor, and slammed his hand against Miroku's back, laughing.

"Hey buddy," Inuyasha teased, looking down at Miroku's pants, "I thought I told you that the bathroom was just down the hall?" He broke into hysterics.

Miroku punched his arm, overflowing with annoyance. "Shut up!"

The waitress who had served Kagome and Sango was just on her way with the bill when she spotted the two food-covered guys. She giggled and covered her mouth, trying to contain herself.

Zen wiped the ice cream from his face and then shook off the chocolate.

The waitress giggled again. "Uh, sir… heh… you need to pay for the food your, um, friends, wasted on your face..."

Zen snapped his gaze in her direction. "Got a problem?"

"Actually, sir," she snickered again, "I believe it's you who has the problem, because… ha... you need to pay their bill."

Inuyasha stepped up to her. "Hey, it's okay, I'll pay for it." He turned to grab his wallet out of his pocket when he saw Miroku's face. "Hey Miroku… yo, buddy?" Mouth agape, Miroku simply blinked. "Say something! Move… hello? Wake up!"

Miroku just stood where he was, soda leaking down his pants and to his shoes. The goose bumps rising from his flesh confirmed his cold appearance. "Um… I think I have to pee…" He bolted out of the crowd and practically dove into the men's restroom.

That really set off the young waitress. She tried as hard as she could not to laugh, but the tears were forming in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she croaked, bursting into laughter. "I hope I don't get fired."

Inuyasha didn't laugh; he didn't want to provoke her. "Uh, here," he shoved three hundred yen into her hands. "That's for my table too. Keep the change. Kikyo! We're outta here."

Zen wiped his face again. "I'll fetch Miroku." He headed off to the bathroom.

Kikyo and the gang caught up to Inuyasha and they headed out, Inuyasha's arm around Kikyo's waist.

"Thanks!" the waitress chirped and waved to them. "Bye!"

**0000**

"Hey Yuka, over here!"

Kagome jumped up and down, snatching her friend's attention over the sea of students.

Yuka snapped her head around, looking for Kagome. She spotted her and waved back. "Hi!" She skipped across the courtyard to her friend.

"Ohayou! How was your summer?" Kagome asked, hugging her friend.

"It was good, even against the fact that we didn't see each other throughout the entire vacation."

They broke from the embrace. "I visited you!" Kagome protested.

"Yea, when I was sick!" Yuka teased. "It's okay. So, where's Sango?"

"Oh, she had some-" Kagome froze when she saw Inuyasha walking across the courtyard with Miroku and Zen. She dove behind Yuka. "Look! It's Inuyasha! Hide me!"

Yuka's heart thudded. "Oh wow, he's coming right this way!"

"Yuka! You have to hide me from him! Especially from Zen!" She clutched to the back of Yuka's shirt, trying to hide herself.

"Why?" Yuka was completely confused. "Are you afraid he won't notice you?"

"Augh. You know that is not the issue. Ah, they're getting closer!"

Inuyasha and his possy walked right passed them, not even acknowledging their existence. Kagome automatically relaxed.

"Phew," she sighed, standing up straight. "Thanks, Yuka."

"Uh, I didn't do anything… what was that-"

"Okay, well, I guess I'd better go to my locker before class starts!" Kagome interrupted hurriedly. There was no way she would tell Yuka what happened at WacDonald's. Yuka would probably strangle her, even though they didn't do anything to Inuyasha directly. "Don't forget to tell me who your locker partner is! Bye!" She bolted through the crowd, heading towards the locker hallways. She begged the Gods to keep Inuyasha away from her.

But of course, her prayers were stepped on like a bug.

There he was, sauntering toward her along the hall, scanning for his locker. Kagome tried her hardest to ignore him, but as she looked along the wall for locker 1147, she couldn't help but keep an eye on him.

He had stopped; obviously he found his locker and started to open it. Kagome tried to go right passed him, but she'd found her locker.

Inuyasha was opening it.

All of the muscles in Kagome's body turned to ice. She tried to escape, but she couldn't even function on a basic level. How could she deal with this? _No_, Kagome thought. _No WAY! I am NOT going to share my locker with this… this… pig!_ But, knowing there was nothing she could do, she sighed in defeat and flopped her back against the locker next to hers.

Inuyasha halted in mid-combination rotation and glanced up at Kagome. Instead of some sort of greeting common amongst normal humans, he growled and yanked open his locker. He shuffled around inside, shoving books violently into the compartment. He took a step back, and Kagome reached to put her books inside. Inuyasha rudely smashed the locker door shut before she could get to it. Her jaw dropped.

Inuyasha turned to Kagome and slammed his palm to the locker threateningly, barely missing her face. "I don't want you to go thinkin' you and I are going to be friends, you got that?" he hissed. With his other hand, he pointed his index finger in her face, centimeters from her nose. "Just because we're locker partners _doesn't_ mean that our past is suddenly erased. Don't get to the conclusion that all of a sudden locker partner means friend…" He dropped his pointing finger and added more lowly, "…or anything more."

"That's fine with me," Kagome snapped back bravely, pressing her back as far against the locker as she could, "because I don't really like you very much."

"The feeling's mutual. No relationship will form between us, then. It's sealed, it's done, end of conversation." He pushed back from Kagome and shuffled through the crowd.

"Unfortunately, we already have a relationship!" Kagome shouted after him. "Shouldn't we try to get along, despite your obnoxious attitude?"

Without looking back, Inuyasha flicked his hand at her over his shoulder as if to dismiss her and said dryly, "Nope."

Kagome groaned and thumped her head on the locker and slid to the floor. She had quite the year ahead of her.

**0000**

A/N: If you're curious on why they hate each other so much, well, you'll find out later. I'm hoping that this one will be better then Save Me. I'm hoping it goes along much smoother. I've thought it out more so than I have Save Me, which helps a lot. Now I'm gonna be I'll be on a roll! Thanks for reading, well, please review!

PS since I'm now five years older (as are my avid readers), I'm going to be making this story a lot less friendly, and a lot more adult. You've been warned.


	2. First Day

A/N: Here's chapter 2. Enjoy! This has also been adjusted in minor ways. Don't fret!

2010: I updated it, again. Goes with my complete story-revision.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. Obviously.

**Locker Partners**

**Chapter Two**

**Day One**

Sango slid into a random seat behind Kagome and Yuka's left in the Trigonometry room. She let her backpack fall to the floor.

"Hey," she breathed in Kagome's ear.

"Hi there," Kagome replied gruffly, not looking up from her backpack as she dug inside.

Sango shot her gaze to Yuka and mouthed 'What's with her?' Yuka just shrugged, palms in the air. Sango turned back to Kagome and tried to get her to talk before class started. "Hey, guess what?" Sango said, trying to sound cheery. "Remember that waitress that served us at WacDonald's on Saturday?" Kagome nodded, finally looking up at Sango. "Well, she's my locker partner! She goes to this school! Her name is Eri. I bet she saw the whole scene too."

Yuka asked curiously, "What scene?"

"Nothing!" Kagome and Sango chorused, turning their heads to Yuka and smiling innocently. Before any of them could ask who her locker partner was, Kagome got to Yuka first.

"So, uh, Yuka, who is your locker buddy? Anyone popular?" Kagome asked.

"Yeah, actually," Yuka replied cheerfully. Kagome hadn't expected _that _answer. . . "He's Zen."

Kagome stopped breathing. A week into it and already this year sucked.

Sango nudged Kagome back to her senses.

"U-uh, cool, Yuka," Kagome stuttered. "M-maybe you'll be b-best friends with the almighty Inuyasha." She gulped. _Oh wonderful_, she thought dryly. _Just another terrific way for me to meet up with Mr. Ice Cream Man. This is torture._

The bell rang for class to begin and the students settled quietly in their seats. Kagome tapped her pencil against her desk. _Oh good_, she thought, relieved, as she looked around the room. _No Inuyasha in this class._

"So, Kagome," Yuka whispered, leaning forward across the aisle, "who's your partner?"

Kagome froze. She couldn't tell Yuka; or Sango. Yuka would probably rip off her face so that she could take her locker and—

BAM

The entire class fixed their eyes on the person storming in, obviously late for class.

"I'm so glad you could join us, Inuyasha," the Trigonometry teacher, Mr. Nosh, droned. "Now please take your seat."

Inuyasha smiled and half the girls in the room broke out with infatuated sighs and giggles, including Yuka.

"You wanna know who my locker partner is?" Kagome whispered over her shoulder to her two friends.

Yuka stopped drooling over Inuyasha, surprisingly, and turned her curiosity to Kagome.

"Well, he just walked in the room."

Yuka's eyes widened and her heart skipped a beat. "W-what?"

"You couldn't have told us this _before_ class!" Sango whispered ferociously.

"Oh, my, gosh. W-what was he like? How does he smell? What did he say? Spill it!"

"Yuka," Kagome whispered, "contain yourself! He-"

"Ladies in the back," the teacher snapped. "Please be quiet. I get that this is the first day of school and all, but you people are almost adults now."

"Yes Mr. Nosh," the three girls chorused.

**0000**

"Alright, class is over. Tell us everything."

Kagome hugged her binder and stared at Yuka. "There is nothing to tell." She eyed Inuyasha warily as he passed them coming out of the classroom.

"Sure there is!" Yuka insisted. "I'm sure he said something to you when he saw you at his locker."

"Actually, it was vise versa."

Kagome's two friends looked puzzled.

"I saw _him_ at _my _locker." Then she whispered to Sango, "It was not a pleasant conversation, I gotta say."

Sango widened her eyes and silently urged her to say more. Yuka was excited about all this, whereas Sango was worried. With the past Kagome had with Inuyasha, life couldn't be good, especially now that Yuka had Zen for her locker partner.

"There's nothing to tell!" Kagome repeated. "I'll share the small details with you _after_ school!" She turned and started walking away when Sango grabbed her arm.

"At least tell _me_," she said quietly. "He could ruin your image you know! Everyone believes the 'all-powerful' Inuyasha! Tell me what he said!"

"Sango, _after_ school, okay? I gotta _go_."

Sango and Yuka both sighed in defeat, Yuka more disappointed than Sango. "Okay," they said in unison.

Kagome smiled. "Thanks you guys. Well, I'm off!" She began to walk away when she remembered something. "Oh, and Yuka." Her two friends turned to face her. "Be careful what you say around Zen."

Sango agreed. "Yeah. Try not to mention… ice cream." She winked at Kagome.

Yuka's face was sort of expression-less. Slightly confused, and, still having no idea what her friends were talking about, she simply shrugged. "Um, okay."

They waved and headed off to their next classes. Kagome silently prayed that Inuyasha wouldn't be in there. She'd already jinxed herself twice, and she hoped not to do it again.

So there she sat, all alone in the back of her history class, watching the students file into the room. She opened up the textbook on her desk and skimmed through the pages. Then she glanced up to see Eri, the young waitress from WacDonald's, walk through the door. Smiling, Kagome called to her and waved. Eri sat in the seat next to her.

"Hi, I'm Kagome Higurashi," Kagome introduced herself, smiling yet again.

Eri smiled back. "Oh yeah, I remember you from the other day! I'm Eri." Just then, the two girls looked up in time to see Zen walking in, clenching his jaw and staring coldly at Kagome. Kagome just glared right back at him until he finally looked away, settling himself into a seat across the room.

Eri giggled and Kagome glared at her. "What?"

"I'm just remembering the incident with the ice cream," Eri croaked.

"It wasn't that funny."

The bell rang, and all of the students pretended they were doing something appropriate when the World History teacher, Ms. Norris, stomped into the room, her heels clicking on the hard carpeted floor. Pivoting on her heel Army-style, she faced the class, adjusting her thick-rimmed glasses. She was a young teacher; early thirties, her layered deep brown hair and narrow face made her look even younger. Her blue eyes scattered across the room, as if counting the students. She set her notebook and purse onto her desk and turned back to face the class.

"My name is Ms. Norris," she stated with her British accent. "There is no need to pretend that you were _actually_ doing something worth both of our times because I know you weren't."

"I don't remember her in the staff section of the yearbook," Kagome whispered to Eri.

"Yeah, she must be new," Eri whispered back.

"There are few things you should know about how I teach. I don't like chatterboxes-" she lowered her eyes to Kagome and Eri, who immediately shut their mouths- "so if you're going to talk I suggest that tomorrow you sit by someone you're not likely to converse with."

Kagome looked around the room and sighed gratefully. Even though Zen was here, on a brighter note, Inuyasha was not.

Just then, speak of the devil, Inuyasha burst through the door. Ms. Norris stared blankly at him.

"And I do _not_ accept tardiness," Ms. Norris added, still staring at Inuyasha, who was standing in the doorway, as if waiting for a greeting. "Ah yes, the famous Inuyasha. I've heard a lot about you."

Inuyasha smiled proudly, as if bragging that everyone knew about him.

"And they're not pleasant things," Ms. Norris added snappily.

Inuyasha's smile faded.

"I can't help but wonder. What reason could you _possibly_ have to explain your tardiness? What could have, in any way, delayed you?"

Inuyasha paused. "Uh, actually, I got… lost."

"I truthfully doubt that. Please, sit down." She pointed to an empty seat in the back of the room… right next to Kagome.

He didn't move. "Um, could I sit… somewhere else? Please?"

"Just because students your age treat you like a god doesn't mean I should. Now, sit down."

"But…"

"I said, _sit down_," Ms. Norris repeated forcefully.

Inuyasha shuffled unhappily to the back of the room and flopped down into the seat beside Kagome, not even bothering to look at her.

Eri rolled her eyes.

"As I was saying," Ms. Norris continued, leaning on her desk, "in this class you will treat me with the respect I deserve, even if that is not what your other teachers require. If you're going to be late-" she eyed Inuyasha, who was scowling at the wall "-then don't even come into my classroom. Unless you have a pass or a believable reason for being late, don't even place a hand on my doorknob."

Inuyasha kept his face to the wall, though his eyes flickered to Kagome, then quickly back before she noticed. He rested his chin in his palm moodily. Eri peered over behind Kagome to get a peek at Inuyasha.

"What's your problem?" she snorted. Inuyasha responded with a flick of his ear. Eri sighed with frustration and slumped back into the chair.

"Two words," Kagome whispered, not breaking her concentration on Ms. Norris, "arch enemies."

"You don't look like the kind of person to have enemies."

Inuyasha, still sulking in his little corner, snapped, "Just drop it."

…and they did just that.

Ms. Norris folded her arms. "This is a class for world history, just in case you were unaware. Anyway, here you will learn about American History, Japanese History, European History, blah, blah, and blah. You get my drift." She fixed her gaze on a group of three boys, Zen included, who were jabbering carelessly near the bookshelf. She knew exactly what they were talking about.

"Yes boys, I'm single. No, my bra size is none of your business. Oh yes, I am _way_ out of your age range _and_ your league." She placed her index finger to the corner of her lips and looked up in thought. "And I don't _think_ I've performed at a strip club… oh, and no, you could _not_ beat the world record on how fast you can undress me."

The group stared in shock at the new teacher, speechless. No denying it now… the boys were guilty as charged.

"Separate yourselves."

Inuyasha, despite being completely on the other side of the room, heard everything the boys were talking about as well, and with the response Ms. Norris made, he couldn't help but snicker a little.

"Geez, Inuyasha, some friend _you _are," Kagome said dryly, glaring at Inuyasha.

He rested his forehead on his forearm, practically choking to death with laughter. "Teh heh… you didn't hear what they said…ha…" came his reply. With his face to the desk, he shut his eyes tight and full out cracked up.

"No, I _didn't_ hear what they said, but I heard Ms. Norris, and frankly it wasn't that funny."

"Yeah," Eri cut in, "aren't you supposed to be Mr. Ice Cream Man's friend?"

Now he was becoming annoying. He broke into an uncontrollable laugh, tears streaming down his face and fist pounding on the desk. Yup, he was _way_ overly amused.

Kagome rolled her eyes and folded her arms.

Once Zen and his Play Boy-loving buddies had separated, Ms. Norris turned her attention to the hysterical hanyou in the back.

"Inuyasha, what is it that you find so amusing?" she asked boredly.

The hanyou only responded with more laughter. It was getting very ridiculous, especially when a few classmates joined in on the humor, only because Inuyasha looked pretty funny sitting there pounding his fist on the table and rolling with laughter.

"Mr. Kashimo," Ms. Norris warned. But of course Inuyasha totally tuned her out, and that annoyed her.

"KASHIMO!" she roared.

Inuyasha took a deep breath, a huge smile planted on his face. He looked up, but the sight of his teacher made him lose control again, and he keeled over.

"Get out of my classroom," the British teacher ordered without hesitation.

Inuyasha froze. "What?" he asked, voice muffled because of his forehead resting on the desk.

"I said, 'Get out of my classroom,'" she repeated.

He looked up with sad eyes. "But-"

"No. No 'but's. Leave."

"But I-"

"Mr. Kashimo! I have papers to pass out and you are wasting my time."

"But wait-!"

She pointed to the door, putting her foot down. She would not stand this kind of behavior.

Inuyasha sighed in defeat and rolled his head down, reaching his arm out for his backpack. One glance back at his British instructor nearly sent him back into the waters. As he stood up straight and swung one strap over his shoulder he snorted, scratching his nose to try and hide his grin.

"Good riddance," Kagome said cheerfully.

He perked the corner of his upper lips and snapped his head in a mockery, snide remark. Kagome stuck her tongue out at his back.

"Grow up, you two," Eri snapped.

Inuyasha shuffled through the row of desks, snickering all the way.

That frustrated Ms. Norris. She firmly pointed to the door and snarled, "Get out of my sight!"

"Yes ma'am!" Inuyasha said quickly and scurried out the door. Another burst of laughter was heard just before the door clicked shut behind him.

**0000**

Zen swiftly stepped out of his History class, an extra pair of handout sheets in his grip. He glanced down the hall as one of his best friends dashed over to him.

"Hey," Inuyasha breathed, scratching his head right above where a _normal_ ear would have been.

"Yo," Zen replied. He stared at his panting friend. "Man, you look worn out."

Inuyasha released a breath, taking in another for each 'uh'. "Uh, yeah. I was, uh, running around the school."

The other demon raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Uh, 'cause I was uh… running from the deans."

Zen snorted, "You're such a loser." He tossed Inuyasha the extra papers and said casually, "You look like you just had a serious humping fit."

The hanyou laughed nervously. "Heh eh… uh… Who would I hump?"

"Kikyo?" he suggested.

"Dude, she's in class."

"Right on! And _right_ in front of the teacher, you _naughty_ boy!"

He sighed. "You've been hanging around Miroku too much."

Speak of the devil, and he shall arrive.

"Hi guys!"

The pair of boys groaned as a certain perverted friend of theirs came striding around the corner. Of course, Miroku spotted the nearest tall, lean girl and darted right over to her.

Zen and Inuyasha rolled their eyes, snorting in unison, "Typical."

As Miroku sweet-talked that poor innocent girl, he slyly slid his hand down her back and pinched her butt. In the split second the girl lifted her fist, Inuyasha had rushed to the pervert's rescue, dragging him away by the collar before he could get hit. The girl just rolled her eyes and stormed away.

"Hey!" Miroku whined as Inuyasha let go of his shirt. "You weren't supposed to do that! It's tradition for me to get punished for my perversion!"

Inuyasha stared at him. "So you're saying you _like_ pain?"

"Well, I wouldn't say that…" He began to grin devilishly with wicked, kinky thoughts.

"Okay." The hanyou shrugged and curled his fingers into a fist, socking Miroku a good one, square on the mouth.

He staggered back a bit, pulling a finger to his bleeding lip.

Inuyasha smiled and smacked his friend's back. "See? There ya go. Duty fulfilled. Happy?" He walked away, reading over the papers Zen handed him, all the while mumbling to himself, "Blah blah blah."

Suddenly he bumped into someone and immediately looked up.

"Get out of my _way_!" the black-haired girl hissed.

"Shit, Sango!" he snapped back, turning as she stormed past him toward the gym. "Lighten up, bitch!

Why the hell does Miroku like you!"

Ah, speaking of which…

SMACK.

Sango shoved the red-faced lecher out of her way.

Miroku stared blankly across the hall at Inuyasha who shouted back to him, laughing, "Hey, it's tradition, right?" Miroku laughed sarcastically and stormed after Sango, only to repeat the process.

Inuyasha shook his head. _He'll never learn…_

**0000**

"Hi," Kagome grumbled as she flopped down on the gym floor next to Sango, forcing a half-hearted smile.

"Hello," Sango replied cheerfully. "So how was World History?"

"Horrible," she grunted.

Sango's smile faded. "What? Why?"

The teacher was talking about P.E. uniforms, but the two tuned her out entirely.

Kagome sat on her knees and set her backpack down in front of her. "Inuyasha was there. He sat right next to me. I know you're probably thinking that it's no big deal, but you don't know the attitude he gave me this morning."

Sango listened intently as her friend told her each detail about the little event by the locker that morning, suddenly being angered.

"That's funny," Sango whispered dryly. "He wasn't saying that to you _last_ year, now was he?"

"Sango, that's a completely different story," Kagome replied. However, Sango wasn't convinced.

"What does it matter? Later you apologized, didn't you?"

"Of course I did!" Her voice was rising slightly, and Sango has to shush her for a minute before Kagome continued. "But _he_ didn't! He didn't even push it behind him! He has no common sense."

"Yeah, but he's the one who should've apologized in the first place."

"I know, but it isn't about the apology. It's about meaning the apology. I don't think I've ever heard him say he's sorry."

The two lapsed into silence, deciding that now would be a really good time to listen to their young teacher, Ms. Satoro, since she was calling roll.

"Nami Ayoutso?"

A girl in the back of the room with brown hair raised her hand. "Here!"

Ms. Satoro continued calling names alphabetically. "Kagome Higurashi?"

"Here."

"Sango Kanyama?"

"Present!"

Then the teacher paused, staring down at her attendance list. "Uh… Inu… Inuyasha Kashimo?" She looked up, puzzled, and searched the room with her red eyes, her green earrings swinging back and forth.

Kagome froze, eyes wide. _There's only one Inuyasha that I know of in this school. But maybe if I'm lucky, it's not the Inuyasha I'm thinking of…_

Every single being in the gym turned around to face the back of the room. There he was, Inuyasha, leaning against the wall with his arms folded and his backpack on the ground beside him. He glared at the black-haired teacher.

"Yeah, I'm here," he grumbled, barely loud enough for her to hear. "The question is: _why_ am I here?"

Most of the girls giggled or stared, but Sango lost it.

Ignoring her students, Ms. Satoro said calmly in her normal smooth tone, "Mr. Kashimo, please come here."

Inuyasha pushed away from the wall, swung one strap of his backpack over his shoulder, and shuffled to the teacher.

Every gaze in the room was upon the half-demon. Nearly all of the girls were whispering about how cute he was. Sango had something else on her mind.

"Is there something he's not telling us?" she joked as Inuyasha trudged over to Ms. Satoro.

"Yeah," Kagome agreed, her mood suddenly lifting. "I'll bet he paid the girls last year to keep his secret."

She started laughing. "He's really a girl! I knew it! Maybe she'll pay _us_!"

Inuyasha glared evilly at the two girls over his shoulder as he reached into his pocket to uncrumple his schedule and hand it to the teacher in front of him.

Ms. Satoro's red eyes scanned the wrinkled paper, and she said quite loudly, "It appears you really _do_ have Girls' Gym."

"Yeah, I kinda noticed," he growled, "so fix it."

She looked up. "And why aren't you wearing your school uniform? Have none of you teachers noticed? The day is almost halfway through. Take this to the principal's office, and see to it that you also get your uniform."

Kagome and Sango just snickered behind him.

**0000**

"I'm telling you! He's stalking me!"

Eri stared at her new friend. "Why do you say that?"

Kagome violently jerked her hand to the other side of the room, gesturing to a certain someone, and shouted, "Just look! He was in my first period, second period, _strangely_ my third period, and now here he is AGAIN! I'm _cursed_!" She groaned pathetically and slammed her forehead on the desk. "And now he has lunch with u-uuus…"

Sango, sitting behind Kagome, placed a hand on her friend's back. "Look, I'm sure it's not that bad. Besides, gym class was only a mix up."

Yuka's expression brightened. "Gym? He has _gym_ class with you guys! Oh my god! Did you get to see his butt?"

Kagome and Sango glared at her, annoyed, Sango snapping warningly, "Yuka…"

Yuka's eyes rolled to the side. "Sor-ry. Sheesh. _Breathe_!"

**0000**

Lunchtime.

Ah, yes, it was finally lunchtime, the time for Kagome to actually get away from Inuyasha. She just hoped that he didn't decide to come over and dunk milk on her head. Though she guessed that he'd just be paying her back for a certain day the previous year.

It sure was going to be difficult avoiding him, though, since Yuka had a _tiny_ obsession with him. Well, 'tiny' is an understatement.

"This is so exciting!" Yuka squealed as the group of four sat down with their lunches. Sango and Kagome rolled their eyes.

"And you were telling _us_ to breathe?" Sango retorted. "You'd think you were meeting BoA or something."

Yuka ignored her comment and turned to the left to face Kagome. "You have no idea how much I want to be you right now! _Every_ class… and he's your locker partner!"

"Don't remind me," grumbled Kagome, poking at her pudding moodily with her spoon.

Eri attempted to cheer her up. "At least you'll be the talk of the school." Instead, that only made it worse.

To top it off, a special someone and his gang decided to come mosey by.

"Move," snapped the one and only Inuyasha, standing with the rest of the group across the table, his girlfriend hanging off of his arm. Not a single one of them had a lunch.

"No," growled Sango in return.

"This is the table we cool guys sat at every day last year, and we ain't stoppin' now!"

Zen stepped up. "So get your asses up and scoot."

Kagome peeked around Yuka and looked at Sango. Sango looked right back at her, knowing what she meant without a single word spoken. Kagome shot up from the table, looking back at the boys in front of her, tray in hand, and hissed, "You're right. We're not 'cool'."

Sango stood from Yuka's right and, still facing Inuyasha, said to Kagome, "Exactly. We'll leave because we're not constipated, overweight, outta-style losers."

Teens from nearby tables who'd heard the insult all broke into a chorus of 'oh's. One guy shouted, "OH! She got _you_!" Another yelled, "_Buurrrn_!"

Grinning, Yuka, Eri, Sango, and Kagome sauntered away from the table, leaving the boys to bathe in their own humiliation.

**0000**

"Yo, Dad! I'm home. Not like you care…"

"Hi, son."

Inuyasha paused in the entrance room, making sure that he had really heard his father. Then he kicked off his shoes and stepped into the kitchen, saying, "You mean you're _actually_ greeting me today?"

"I'm in a better mood today," Inuyasha's dad, Inutaisho, replied, pen racing across the papers in front of him as he sat at the counter.

"Mmm-hmm." Inuyasha snatched a Pepsi from the refrigerator, and shuffled over to the bar, peering over his father's shoulder at the paperwork. "What case this time?" He popped open the can and gulped down half of the soda.

Inutaisho sighed, eyes skimming across the words. "This kid demon robbed a bank, and he thinks just because he's still a 'child' that he should at least have the right for a human prison." He snorted.

"Um, pops? Aren't you supposed to be _helping_ him?"

"I hate this job…"

Inuyasha turned and scuffled to the couch, flopping down onto the leather and kicking the footrest up. "So quit." He snatched the remote up from the coffee table with his foot and kicked it back, catching it swiftly in his fingers.

Inutaisho finally placed his pen down and stared at the back of his son's head. "Son, do you know the average life span of a mortal?"

"Uh… no, and to tell ya the truth, I don't really care."

"Seventy-nine years."

Inuyasha snorted. "Seventy-nine? Why not eighty?"

"And do you know the average life span of a demon such as myself?"

"Uh…"

"In the feudal era, it was four hundred and fifty-three years."

Inuyasha turned his torso, resting on his elbow so that he could face his dad. He scrunched his eyebrows, joking, "What's with this approximate stuff?"

"Now? Seven hundred and seventy-two years."

"Okay, this is getting irritating."

"That's a long time, even for me."

He gulped the rest of his Pepsi down and crushed the can. "Is there a point to this information you're so generously handing to me?"

"If I quit this job, what am I going to do for the next seven hundred years?"

Inuyasha gaped at his dad, pensive. "You're only seventy-two?"

"Hey, you _can_ do math." He turned back to his work. "No, I'm not."

"So why'd ya say it?"

"It was figurative speech. Are you suggesting that I look old?"

Facing the TV again, Inuyasha flipped his body back in a comfortable position, switching from channel to channel. "You don't look a day over six-twenty."

"And people wonder why…"

Inuyasha turned off the TV and bolted off the couch. "Yeah…" He stormed over to the trashcan by the counter and threw his crushed can violently into the bin. "'Cause I'm such a curse to you," he growled, stomping into the entrance room and turning up the stairs.

Inutaisho looked up to the doorway of the front room and winced as he heard Inuyasha's door slam shut, ending with a loud cracking sound.

**0000**

"Mom, Dad! I'm home!"

Kagome stepped into the kitchen to greet her parents. She went to her dad sitting at the table and planted a kiss on his cheek. "Good morning!"

Mr. Higurashi laughed. "Morning? It's three in the afternoon!"

"Yes, but not in your case," she replied to her father while patting his shoulder. She then tiptoed to the stove where her mom was fixing up something that smelled delicious. "What're you making?"

"Fried eggs," Mrs. Higurashi answered. "If you want some, now is the chance to speak up. They won't be around long with your father sitting at the table."

"Sure, I'll have a quick snack. Want any help?"

Mrs. Higurashi shook her head. "No, I've got it."

Kagome sighed as she slumped into the chair beside her father, finally able to relax. "Dad, are you picking up Souta today?"

"Affirmative," he chirped, flipping through the newspaper. "So, how was your first day back?"

"Oh, it wasn't all that great." She leaned back as her calico cat, Buyo, hopped up onto her lap. "I'm trying my best to erase it from my memory, though."

Both adults exchanged glances, and then turned their attention to their daughter.

"Well?" Mr. Higurashi pushed. "You going to tell us about it?"

Kagome's eyes sparkled as if she'd been anticipating this moment all day. Straightening in her seat, she began, "Okay, you guys remember Inuyasha and his buddy Miroku, right?"

They nodded, with a kind of shrug that suggested a permanent place for Inuyasha in their memories.

"Well, he's in every one of my classes."

Mrs. Higurashi eyed her spouse in a disbelieving, almost dread before returning to her cooking.

Kagome nodded. "Yeah." Suddenly she remembered a piece of information to help them understand her woe a little better. "Oh, I didn't tell you guys…" Turning to her father, she continued, "Dad, this Saturday, Sango and I… _did_ something."

Her father's eyebrow shot up as he lifted his glass of orange juice to his lips. "I don't need to call a lawyer, do I?"

Shaking her head, she covered the grin on her lips. "Sango found it in her heart to pour soda down Miroku's pants and I stuffed my ice cream in Zen's face."

Juice sputtered across the newspaper as Mr. Higurashi coughed and gagged, clearing his throat. Snickering slightly he dabbed up the liquid with his napkin.

"Kagome!" her mother drawled, whipping to face her child. "That is not nice at all!"

"No," Mr. Higurashi coughed, "but it sure is funny."

"Kai…" his wife warned as she reached into the drawer below her and chucked a pair of chopsticks at him. He caught them just before they collided with his head. With a smile, he chirped, "Thanks!"

"And it was a waste of a perfectly good bowl of chocolate ice cream…" With that she shared the story of the rest of her day as she pet Buyo between his furry ears. Mrs. Higurashi set the eggs in front of the two sitting at the table while Kagome chattered away. When she was finished blurting all the negative things possible, her parents only stared at her.

"Was there anything _good _about today?" Kai asked

She glimpsed down at her purring cat. "Well, I got French, but then again, so did Inuyasha."

"Okay, was there anything good that has no bad side?"

"Um… Sango called Inuyasha a constipated, overweight, outta-style loser at lunch, and he had no comeback."

Kai snorted again, but with the glare sent warningly from his wife, he quickly wiped the grin from his lips and cleared his throat. "So, what are your thoughts on how to deal with this?" He brought the last bite of egg to his mouth.

Their daughter sighed yet again. "Well, I was planning on ignoring it, but he sits next to me in second period, and in French she assigned every student a permanent partner for the year. Guess who's the lucky guy…" She poked at the eggs with her chopsticks.

Kai leaned back in his seat, eyes darting from his wife to his daughter. Eyebrows raised, his eyes fell to the side as he mouthed "Oh-_kay _" while pushing back from the table. Handing his plate to the sink, he suggested over his shoulder, "Well, Kag, deary, why don't you finish up your… _snack_ and join me in the car to pick up Souta?"

She nodded moodily. "Sure…" As she gobbled up the last bit of her protein source of the day, Kai planted a kiss on Mrs. Higurashi's cheek while she dried her hands on the dishtowel.

"Ready, Kaggie?"

"Yeah, Dad."

**0000**

"Tell me again why we're here?"

"Because I want to observe the magnificent woman who goes by the name Sango," Inuyasha's black-haired friend cheeped, rubbing his palms together as they stood across the street from Hoshi Elementary School, waiting.

Inuyasha folded his arms and grunted, "Why did I let you drag me along?"

"Because you were pissed off at your father and when I called you agreed automatically to come."

"And _why_ did you invite me in the first place?"

"…I didn't want to come alone."

The school bell rang.

"And why is it that you're not taking the last two statements pervertedly?"

Staring off into the distance, watching for Sango, Miroku continued, voice not faltering, "I am; I'm just containing myself."

After a few seconds of silence, the half-demon added, "Why am I asking you all of these questions?"

"Because you're an idiot."

He nodded once in agreement. "Nuff said."

"Yes, sir."

By the front door a teenage girl with dark brown hair stood up from her spot on the bench, which was hidden by a parked golden car. Her bangs bouncing against her eyebrows with the slight breeze, she greeted a young boy.

"There she is…" Miroku sighed.

The half-demon rolled his eyes. "Yes, Miroku, you creeper, I did realize that, thanks _so_ much for letting me know." He observed as Miroku practically drooled all over himself with longing eyes toward Sango. Patting his shoulder, Inuyasha added, "Go on, grab her ass, Miroku. I'll go with you just so I can see how bright the red mark on your face is going to be."

"Thank you so very much for the confidence boost." Miroku smiled dryly before J-walking (more like _dashing_) across the street when the road was clear.

Inuyasha shrugged and gracefully leaped over a passing Acura TL, landing near the sidewalk where Miroku stood with eyes narrowed and arms folded.

"That's cheating," he mumbled.

Smirking, Inuyasha replied, "No it's not." He leaned close into the monk's face as he slipped by, adding lowly, "I'm just showing off."

"I always knew you went for the younger girls!" Miroku accused teasingly as Inuyasha stepped backwards away, palms out.

"The younger the better, ne?"

**0000**

Sango met with her eleven-year-old brother Kohaku at the front door, slipping her handbag, which was as much of a purse as a backpack, over her shoulder. "Ready, kiddo?"

Kohaku nodded and then quickly asked, "Is Kagome with you?"

"No, why?"

He adjusted his backpack straps. "Souta is staying late to finish a test."

Just then a hand landed on Sango's shoulder as a familiar feminine voice rang, "Hey, girl!"

Sango turned to see her friend Kagome stepping up onto the sidewalk from the passenger door of her father's Mitsubishi. "Oh, hey," she chirped. "Souta's staying late, to let you know."

Kagome sighed, "That's okay, I guess. It just annoys me that he doesn't-" She cut herself short, eyes wide in horror as she stared at something behind Kohaku. The siblings followed her gaze, and Sango, too, froze.

Down the sidewalk stood two boys, one with silver hair who was glued to his spot, twitching as he gawked at Kagome, and the other one with black hair who was grinning _madly_ at Sango.

From the driver's seat, Kai Higurashi's eyes darted back and forth across the teens in confusion.

"What're _you_ doing here?" Kagome snapped at the half-demon.

Quickly Inuyasha snapped out of his daze of fury and shot a finger in his friend's direction. "Don't look at _me_! This was Miroku's idea!"

As if on cue, Miroku let his eyebrows rise and fall as he winked and grinned at Sango. Her eyelid began to twitch.

"You're stalking me!" Kagome continued to roar.

"What? I sure as hell am not!"

"Are you _trying_ to ruin my life?"

"Look who's talking!" He jutted a clawed finger at his chest. "You've always been jealous of my popularity!"

Her jaw dropped in pure shock. For a moment she was speechless until she bent down and snatched a stone from the concrete, chucking it straight at Inuyasha. "That's not true, and you know it!"

He dashed to the side to dodge the rock. "What the- don't throw things at me!"

Kai raised his eyebrows, still keeping quiet. He figured nothing _too_ horrible could happen.

"My life stinks! I'm going to have to look at _you_ every day!" Kagome cried.

"The feeling is mutual!"

The two prolonged their argument as the descendant of monks made his way to Sango, repeating their usual pattern of groping and smacking.

**0000**

Sorry's

Okay, I'm trying here. Sorry about the VERY slow update. I was grounded recently, so that only ruined my update plans.

And… yes I realize I didn't update Save Me, but I'm working on it, I just need some time. (Plus I'm holding off the update because, Ally, I lied to you.)

PLEASE REVIEW! I don't care if it's bad or not, I'm losing my motivation.

Oh, BY THE WAY, Allison, BRAD BEAT ORLY!


	3. Mmm Milk

**Locker Partners**

**Chapter Three**

**Mmm...Milk**

_"Hey, Inuyasha?"_

_"What?" The half demon glanced up at her, the eraser of his pencil sticking out from between his teeth._

_"Do you understand any of this?"_

_He slipped across the aisle to the desk in front of Kagome and straddled the chair, facing her with his assignment on her desk. "Which is it?"_

_"This one." She tapped the algebra problem on her paper with the lead of her pencil._

_"Okay, see this four? Try changing it to a one."_

_"Oh sure, just randomly change a number. Brilliant, really." She leaned forward and blew an eraser slab off the sheet of paper._

_"Look, there are two roots in the equation 'cause the highest order term is x squared. I know when we all started with the stupid quadratic equations we factored the quadratic first and _then_ read the solutions from the factoring, but it only works when it can be factored easily."_

_"You sound like a book voiced up for teens."_

_He sighed and flicked the tip of her nose. "Pay attention."_

_"Right…"_

_"If P of z is a polynomial function having only real coefficients, then P of the z-conjugate is conjugated with P of z for any complex z. If P's property is described, then all of P's coefficients must be real numbers. Know why?"_

_"' Cause fake numbers do you no good?"_

_"Kagome…"_

_Groaning, she slumped down on the desk surface, eyes closed. "Algebra is for men, no doubt!"_

_He plopped the pencil onto the sheet and leaned back against the edge of the desk. "Well, if I'm no good at explaining go ask Mr. Bookworm Math Wiz Freak with his photographic memory who repeats every word of the algebra book verbatim and nothing else."_

_Her eyes widened as she glared at him. "Hey, just because you can understand and translate his words doesn't mean that we can too. I'll pass on that one."_

_A deep huff escaped his lips as he leaned forward, snatching Kagome's pen from the corner and twisted the cap off. "Here." His fingers clasped around her wrist and he skimmed the ballpoint along her arm, writing his seven-digit number in small ink. "It's my number. Call if you can't figure it out."_

_Hot pink swept across her cheeks. "U-uh, okay…"_

_Inuyasha swung his right leg over the seat as he stood and twisted around to sit back in his seat across the row. "Hurry and pack up. Class is almost over."_

_"Already?" She glanced at the clock on the wall. "Oh…"_

_Before she even realized it he was up and across the room, jabbering away with another silver-haired dog demon and his classical monk friend. Clumsily she stuffed her assignment loosely into her binder and shut it, shoving the folder into her standard backpack. As she stood her eyes automatically locked onto the boys, and she noticed Zen, the other dog demon, watching her. _Great, they're probably talking about me… _She shook it off and headed toward the side of the room where Yuka was waiting. Why should she care what they think of her, anyway?_

_Suddenly someone's shoulder slammed right into hers. She turned abruptly. "Hey!"_

_The girl eyed her boorishly. It was none other than Kikyo. "Watch where you're walking, vermin."_

_Kagome remained silent and just kept along to Yuka's smiling face. "What is your problem?" she asked Yuka._

_Her friend winked. "You are _so_ trying to get Inuyasha's attention, aren't you?"_

_Kagome rolled her eyes. "Yuka, you're sad. I already have his attention. It's called _friendship_, ever heard of it?"_

_Gaping lips replaced her smile. "You guys are friends?"_

_Kagome groaned. "Duh!"_

**0000**

"Sango, I can make this a good day, right?"

Sango's red Toyota Celica came to a stop in front of Eido High School's front steps. "Um… I don't see why not…"

She lifted her backpack into her lap. "Well, I mean, can't I make Inuyasha get along with me?"

Sango coughed in reply. She flipped the car into park and switched the motor off. She fiddled with the keys in her lap.

"What's that supposed to mean? I can take control of my own life!"

"I know!" She raised her palms defensively. "I didn't mean anything personal by it. I… just had a frog in my throat."

"Well… can't I?"

Her friend only shrugged. "I don't know, Kagome! Unless you've got some supernatural magical powers, I highly doubt Inuyasha is going to be nice to you."

"I never said I wanted him to be _nice_ to me, I just said I wanted him to get _along_ with me!" She looped her fingers through the handle and pulled it, popping the door open.

Sango opened her door. "That'll never happen."

**0000**

"Don't talk to me."

Kagome slammed her palm on the desk. "No one said you had to sit here."

Inuyasha glared at her with his arms folded. "Didn't I say not to talk to me?"

"Well why don't you get to class on time so you can pick your own seat instead of torturing me with your presence?"

He sat up sharply. "_I'm_ torturing _you_?"

"As a matter of fact you are! I can never just sit here in peace because you always have some snide comment to throw at me!"

"Aw, boo hoo!"

"See! I started off in a good mood today, and it only got better because you didn't bother me last period!"

"Oh, so now _I'm _the one bothering people? How the heck was that switched!"

"I hadn't even said anything to you before you told me _not_ to talk to you! So yes, you're bothering people."

He rolled his eyes and sighed angrily. "Augh, _shut the f-_"

"Inuyasha!"

Every muscle in his body tensed up and he slowly turned his attention to the front of the room. Ms. Norris glared at him over her glasses, feet shoulder width apart. She tapped her ruler into her other palm impatiently.

"You're beginning to drive me a tad insane."

He tried to force an innocent smile.

"And guess what? If I have to deal with you every day like this, I'm going to fail you, understand?"

Slowly he nodded.

"Great. You have been warned. Leave."

Just when he thought she was going to let him off the hook.

Kagome brought a hand to her lips to hide her giggle. Inuyasha's jaw dropped.

"What? But Ms. N-"

"And if you even try to pull _that _again, I'm going to throw a fit."

"But she-"

"Or I might just throw some_thing_ at _you_."

That seemed to shut him up pretty quickly. Surprisingly, he even leapt right out of his seat and dashed out the door before Kagome or Ms. Norris could get another word in.

**0000**

Inuyasha reached up with a smile and ruffled Zen's silver hair as the pair walked from gym class with their monk friend. "Nice."

The dog demon shoved him away. "Okay, please don't touch my hair." He combed it down and smoothed it back with his hands. "Now, for what are you praising me?"

The half-demon swung his arm around Zen's shoulders. "Gym, duh."

Zen rolled his eyes. "Look that was an accident!"

Inuyasha laughed. "Yeah, right. You know you wanted to trip Hojo." After a pause, he mumbled, "I know _I_ did."

It's a sad statement on the youth when this is their idol. "What the hell did he do to deserve your hate?"

His palm landed with a thud on Zen's back. "Your red eyes deceive us all! You're too… goody."

"Oh kiss my ass."

"There's nothing wrong with having a little heart," Miroku cut in.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. "Are you kiddin' me? Miroku, the only bit of a heart _you_ have is dedicated to women's rear ends."

"Oh, speaking of women." He nodded down the hall where a black haired girl and her dark brown haired friend were talking. "Do you think I could get Sango on a date?"

Both demons followed his gaze, and almost simultaneously burst into laughter. Zen was the first to speak. "Yeah, if you were the last of the male sex out of demons, humans… and rats!"

That, of course, made Inuyasha laugh harder. "He's right, you know. I think she'd go for a demon before she'd go for you…then the rat would be her next choice. To her, you're less than a dead bug on her boot."

Miroku folded his arms. "I must protest! Sango comes from a long line of demon slayers… I'm pretty sure she'd choose the rat first."

"Alright." Inuyasha folded his arms. "If you can get her on a date by the end of this year, I'll pay you a hundred thousand yen."

Zen raised his hand. "So will I."

The monk's eyes widened. "Where are you going to get that kind of money!"

"Don't worry about it, Miroku," Inuyasha continued. "If you can get her on a date, a single date, you'll end up with two hundred thousand yen. You can't...? Then you owe each of us one hundred thousand. Deal?" He held out his hand, and Zen did the same.

Now, logical reasoning, which Miroku was usually famous for, would've have told him to back down. But, of course, arrogance took over, and the monk shook Inuyasha's hand, then Zen's without a second thought.

"Deal."

**0000**

One could automatically predict that lunch would not go well that day. Sango, of course, only anticipated it. Lunch with Miroku? Yeah, okay, looking forward to that…

"Is this seat taken?"

Sango glared up at him, swallowing the bite of her chicken sandwich. Miroku smiled down at her from across the table. "Yes, actually, it _is_ taken."

"By whom, if I may ask?"

"I would prefer it if you hadn't asked at all."

The monk sat anyway, setting his plate down. Sango dropped her sandwich and sighed. Did he honestly have to sit there?

That was just the problem for _Sango_, though. Of course, with him Miroku brought a problem for Kagome to deal with. Inuyasha plopped down right next to his holy friend, across from Kagome. Tense glares were shot back and forth, and soon Kikyo joined the pair. When was it going to end?

"Hey look, it's the jerky, thick-headed, brainless poodle," Kagome spat at Inuyasha.

He paused in mid-bite of his pizza. "Pardon?" He set the cheesy goodness down. "At least I'm not a stuck-up, spoiled, bitch-faced princess with no breasts!"

Her palms slammed down on the table and she shot up straight. "I do to have breasts!"

"No you don't! You're a scrawny little stick!"

"Well you sure thought I had some last year, didn't you?"

Meanwhile, Miroku inched his foot forward, then lifted it and began caressing Sango's shin. She closed her eyes and clenched her fists. "Miroku!"

"Yes, dear?" He smiled.

"I'm not your _dear,_ and would you please get your grimy foot off of me!"

His smirk only widened.

"That's it." She jumped up, snatching Miroku's Fanta and twisting off the cap. "You,"-she splashed the drink onto his face- "are a pig-headed," –next his shirt- "no good," –across his stomach- "lecherous, idiotic," –now onto his pants- "son of a bitch!"

Just as Sango threw the bottle at Miroku, full force, and ready to leap over the table with her fist in his face, Eri leapt up and snatched her arms. She managed to calm her down a little bit, but then Inuyasha's voice broke out.

"If you went into advertising, no one would buy your product because you're so ugly!"

"Oh yeah? Advertise this!" The carton of milk came up into her hand and she reached forward, turning it upside down over Inuyasha's head. The liquid splashed down onto his scalp and ran down his ears and face. "Got milk?"

Sango, Eri, and Miroku gawked as Kagome emptied out her drink. Kikyo's eyes shot wide open, as did her mouth. Inuyasha blinked the milk off of his eyelashes, mouth agape, as it trailed down his nose. Yuka tried to hold back her shock, and quickly she snatched up a pile of napkins and placed them in front of the half-demon.

Inuyasha grabbed the napkins and chucked them along the table as he stood up sharply. "You wench! What the hell is with you and milk?"

Kagome did the first thing that came to mind: she gripped the ketchup bottle in the center of the table and held it in both hands, aiming it at Inuyasha's shirt. Before he had time to react, the bottle was squeezed, sending red fluid splattering designs on his uniform.

The half demon stretched forward and grabbed the bottle, pointing it away, any way, from him. Kikyo leapt up and dashed from the table. No way was she going to get caught up in this embarrassing display.

Next thing Inuyasha knew he was on his knees on the table, kicking food in every direction, causing the rest of the group to scatter. The whole lunchroom watched, either cheering or covering their mouths, as Inuyasha pushed Kagome backwards, pinning her on the floor. Her plate came toppling down with them, and he automatically took advantage of her pudding, digging his fingers into the cup and thrusting the chocolate into her face.

"That's for a year of hell!" He tossed the plastic aside as he straddled Kagome's waist.

"The year has barely started!" she spat.

"Who said anything about that year being _this_ year?"

She struggled to get the pudding away from her eyes. An evil glare was shot at him. "Augh, get offa me!"

"No!" he hissed, grabbing the top slice of bread on her sandwich. The mayonnaise side was squashed down on her shirt, right above her breasts.

Kagome gasped. "You asshole!" Surprisingly, she found the strength in her to flip Inuyasha onto his back, thanks to his personal lessons, kneeling beside him to snatch a random guy's bottle of Gatorade. Luckily for her the cap was already untwisted, and she turned it upside down onto Inuyasha's uniform pants. One of those disgusted I'm-gonna-hurt-you looks crossed his face. He leapt to his knees and slapped the bottle aside, reaching for her.

She held up her finger warningly. "Don't make me do the chick fight thing."

His eyebrows scrunched together, and he paused. "Huh?"

Of course he wouldn't know what she was talking about… he was a man. So, as an example, she promptly flung herself at him and yanked hard on his chin-length hair.

"THAT'S IT, YOU TWO!"

Inuyasha froze just as he was reaching for Kagome's neck. The pair turned their gazes to the end of the table to find one of the deans standing with his hands on his hips and a nasty scowl on his face. His index finger pointed down the hall.

"To the principal's office, now." He spotted Miroku, who himself was in a bit of a mess, then Sango glowering down at him. "You, too. The both of you. Go on, follow them."

Kagome released Inuyasha's milky hair and stood up, trying not to slip on the food and beverage contents now smeared on the tile. Inuyasha stood as well, the pair exchanging those hateful glares. Sango and Miroku reluctantly followed the dean's orders, being the first out of the lunchroom and down the hall.

**0000**

"You are going to be a pain in my ass, aren't you, Kashimo?"

Inuyasha only stared dully at the new principal. "I'm always a pain in your ass. My whole family is, apparently."

"Inuyasha!" Kagome hissed lowly. "Don't talk back to him! He's our _principal_!"

He shrugged. "So? He's also an old…acquaintance…" A sarcastic smirk was shot in the dark-haired principal's direction.

The principal, Mr. Zotoi, narrowed his red eyes at the half demon, fingers locking together behind him. His deep voice followed the glare, "I'm beginning to wish I never chose this school."

"Maybe your career choice should've been a janitor, seeing as picking up people's shit is your specialty."

This was going to ruin them. Kagome closed her eyes and rested her face in her upturned palm. Did he have to be such a butthead? They were already in enough trouble as it were, and this little attitude of his was more than likely going to get them into a _worse_ mess.

"Aren't you a charmer, Inuyasha?" Mr. Zotoi said flatly. "You really haven't changed a bit."

"Why, thank you."

The principal's large hands came to a rest on the desk in front of him as he leaned forward. "Alright. Back on track then. The other two have lunch detention. And guess what?" A small grin crawled along his lips.

Kagome looked back up at him, anticipating his next words. Inuyasha, however, was the one to finish his statement.

"We get it too?"

"Oh yes," he beamed, as if he enjoyed it. "The janitors, as you so desire me to be"- Kagome shot a glare at the half demon – "are taking the rest of the evening off. That means you four get to clean the whole lunchroom. Oh, and the restrooms, of course, are left to _you_ two as an extra job. Except you're not getting paid."

All of a sudden Kagome felt the urge to stop her foot and pout, but, why should _she_ do it? Inuyasha had it covered.

His head rolled to the side and he let out a groan. "Are you kidding me!" He flopped his arms over the arms of the chair. "You're just letting it all out on me, aren't you? Do you even _care_ that I'm going to get behind in all of my classes?"

_Our classes, more like. And I care! _Kagome thought to herself. _I cannot believe this!_

Mr. Zotoi stared at him for a moment before blowing his curly bangs from his forehead, and sitting coolly in his chair. "Nope," he stated simply. It_ was_ simple. He did this kind of thing every day. Plus, Inuyasha _really_ deserved it.

Inuyasha sat up abruptly, slamming his palms onto the arms of the chair. "You really are a jackass, Nar-Nar!"

Kagome gasped. Did he just insult their principal?

Mr. Zotoi's eyelid twitched. _Must stay under control…_ The sound of that little Nar-Nar nickname made his heart speed up and his blood boil. Inuyasha would really regret that later… or now, considering his punishment. "And you are an immature, inconsiderate, disrespectful, mindless glutton who needs to learn to hold his half-blooded tongue."

Kagome blinked hard at the pair. They were like siblings, bickering back and forth at each other. How old was this guy? Were they both _two_?

A smug grin formed on Inuyasha's lips. "At least someone in this school sees that." He folded his arms over his crimson-stained shirt. "Who would've thought? The little Nar-Nar has a brain! Oh my God, I never would have suspected it!"

She couldn't handle it anymore. Quickly she interrupted their little banter. "Um, I'm so sorry. Please, he's just being-"

"Himself?" Mr. Zotoi finished for her, finally looking at her instead of the half-demon. "Yes, I know. He's just like his father. Don't worry; you won't suffer his stupidity, Miss Higurashi." He red eyes flicked back onto Inuyasha. "As a matter of fact, puppy, you'll be taking over Miss Kagome's bathroom obligations now. Oh, and, as a bonus, you get janitor duty for the entire week."

"Tch, big deal."

"Fine, the whole month."

Inuyasha's jaw dropped. "What?" No way could this be happening. Oh, wait. Yes, it could. This was his father's bitter enemy, after all.

"You heard me. Your giant dog ears prove that already." He sat down in his desk with a sinister smile. "Now then. Better hurry, Sango and Miroku are waiting. There are extra suits in the cafeteria."

Kagome was the first up out of her seat, swiftly heading through the doorway with a quick bow to her principal. Inuyasha shoved the chair violently to its side as he leapt to his feet, firing a dark glare back at the black-haired man. The door slammed shut behind him.

Mr. Zotoi sighed and ran his fingers through his wavy, shaggy black hair. "How tiring…"

**0000**

"Would you give it up already?"

Another loud whap echoed in the lunch room as Sango's palm greeted Miroku's cheek. She bent back over to pick up the trash bag. Miroku smiled contently as he glanced at her rear end.

"Well, my lovely lady, perhaps you should not bend over in front of me. I just can't resist your gorgeous figure!"

Courtesy of Inuyasha, another thud rang out as Miroku was whapped with the handle of his mop. "Okay, lesson number one," Inuyasha spat, "Don't admit things like that to a woman who has a violent history."

"Thanks, Inuyasha," Sango smiled, landing a hard pat on the half-demon's back.

He nodded. "Any time."

As Sango swept behind the boys, Miroku casually let his fingers graze Sango's butt. This, of course, only blessed him with a kick in the back of his knees. He winced, mouthing a sharp "Ow" to Inuyasha. The half-demon only shrugged.

"Well then," Miroku grunted. He cleared his throat. "So, my friend, you're awfully calm about all this."

"Actually I'm not. I'm just hiding it." He swung the mop rifle-style over his shoulder. "See, Naraku, the ass-"

Miroku's knuckles landed a hard smack on Inuyasha's shoulder. "Dude! Show some respect."

He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. "Miroku, come on. I'm not calling him by his last name. He doesn't _deserve_ my respect. As I was saying, Nar-Nar has assigned me to janitor duty the rest of the month. Like, just me."

"Oh. The bastard."

His sneer became a snort. "Wow, the monk swears!"

"Only on occasion."

He just shook his head with that sarcastic little grin of his and turned his back on him. "Right." The rag of the mop slammed into the soapy water bucket. "And I'm sure that's such a turn on for the fair Sango."

Sango, who was scooping plates, water bottles, and milk cartons into the trash bag, shouted sarcastically over her shoulder, "Oh yeah, I'm so impressed!"

Miroku winked at his half demon friend. "One step closer."

Inuyasha shook his head just as Kagome came shuffling out of the bathroom, rolling up the sleeves of the janitor uniform.

"It's too big!" she complained to Sango. "It's practically falling off!"

Sango observed. "Well, it isn't supposed to fit snug. It's meant for getting dirty. Don't worry about it."

Inuyasha snorted. "Told you that you were a stick! Everything is too loose on you."

She whipped her head around to glare at him. "Did I ask you?"

"I couldn't care less if you had or not."

She fisted her hips. "Oh, that's right, it's all about _you_."

"Damn straight."

A frustrated groan escaped her throat. "Could you be any more of a jerk?"

He thought about it for a second, raised his eyebrows, cocked his head and pursed his lips, replying in a perky tone, "Yeah. I think I could."

"Augh! You're _horrible_!"

"Me?" He jutted a finger to his matted hair. "Look what you did to my beautiful hair! It smells like milk and looks like a mop!"

She shrugged. "It always has."

Anger flared inside of him, as well as his nostrils. He bent down, snatched the bucket by its handle, and chucked it toward Kagome. She gasped and leapt out of the way in time, but instead it bounced off of Sango's back, dumping soapy water all over her head. She froze in her actions to pick up the garbage.

Inuyasha's jaw dropped.

Miroku gaped. "You're in for it now. Better run."

Her spine straightened and she spun slowly on her heels. A death glare was shot to him. He took an alarming step back. "Inuyasha…" she growled. "When did _I_ suddenly become involved in this?"

His palms went up defensively. "I'm sorry! I meant to get Kagome…"

"Oh yeah, that's better." She stormed over to Miroku, snatched his mop out of his hand, and pointed it like a spear at the half demon. "Bring it on."

"Sango, really! I-"

But she was already banging it against his shoulder with a fearful amount of strength. He tried blocking, all the while yelling, "Ow! SANGO! OW!"

Miroku backed up toward Kagome cautiously.

Kagome was smiling, jumping up and down and cheering, "Get him, Sango!"

**0000**

The front door slid shut with a loud bang. "DAD!" Inuyasha roared as he kicked off his shoes and stormed into the kitchen. Inutaisho was bent over the sink, filling a glass of water. He looked over his shoulder.

"Well, hello to you, too."

Inuyasha threw his backpack onto the couch. "Look at me!"

Calmly, he turned off the water, set the glass on the counter, and leaned against the surface with his arms folded to examine his son. He nodded once at the stained red shirt and pants. "Yep. The school called. I figured I'd let you be humiliated all day rather than come get you and pretend to yell at you."

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes. "I'm not in trouble?"

His father shrugged. "Nah. You deserved it. I just hope that poor Kagome girl wasn't too messed up." He sniffed. "What is that disgusting smell?"

Inuyasha sighed and stomped his foot. "Thanks." With that he headed to the stairway, but paused at the first step. "Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Was there ever a girl that drove you crazy so badly that you wanted to rip her throat out and feed it to stray dogs?"

Inutaisho pondered for a moment, talking a gulp of his water. Then he nodded. "There sure was. While I was teaching at the University."

He stepped down and peeked around the entrance room door. "What did you do about her?"

A subtle grin crept up Inutaisho's lips before he turned to sit at the couch.

"I married her."

**0000**

A/N:

Hey, guys, guess what… I'm writing chapter four. What? No way. She's actually motivated? Hurry, get it on record, it won't last long. Keep an eye out! DEC 2010


	4. Sweet Solace

A/N:

Say WHAT?

I originally planned on not finishing this. I don't like to write as much as I used to, and I don't like Inuyasha as much as I used to. Basically, I've grown out of it.

But I got inspired (plus I'm being pestered).. Enjoy it while it lasts.

I have updated the previous chapters. Mostly they are only minor changes, but I recommend re-reading them before reading this chapter. Just to refresh your memory.

Also, language is harsher than it used to be. I'm an adult now.

**0000**

**Locker Partners**

**Chapter Four**

**Sweet Solace**

"Yeah, no, Mom, but hey, thanks anyway."

Kagome turned down the plate of warm, freshly baked chocolate chip cookies her mother was attempting to convince her to offer Inuyasha in exchange for some kind of human interaction. Kagome knew better. No amount of sweets, sweat or bloodshed would solve the issue between her and Inuyasha.

She planted a kiss on her mother's cheek, followed by a soft smile. "Really, though, thanks. I'll eat them later, I think. Inuyasha doesn't deserve them." As she skipped off to meet Sango down the steps of her shrine, she bid her goodbyes with a cheerful disposition to mask the true feelings of woe hovering around her like flies to a dead horse.

Engine humming, Sango unlocked her car doors to allow Kagome an easy slip into the passenger seat. "Hey, girl."

The ride to school was packed with blared music and obnoxious singing—a perfect way to begin the day. At their goodbyes, Kagome headed to her locker to drop off her Physics book. Already sifting through its contents was the one and only Inuyasha. He heard her approach and eyed her.

With a groan, Kagome hollered, a mere ten steps away, "Any chance I can convince you to leave that open for me?"

Snidely grinning, he instantly slammed the metal door shut with a force that rattled the entire row. "Nope." He shoved passed her without hesitation.

She grumbled under her breath, "Naturally."

**0000**

Weeks passed with the dwindling of those hateful reactions to each other. Inuyasha and Kagome made a silent agreement that the best course of action was to ignore each other completely, rather than stir up more mess within the school walls. For the most part, this went well. Rather than chucking food or stones at each other, they resorted to mere insults. Less blood and sweat to clean up.

French was difficult. Neither wanted involvement in the other's schoolwork or existence. Kagome figured he would only want to copy her answers and snake his way through. He rarely contacted her, nor did she contact him, unless there was a specific assignment that required the assigned pairings to work together. Simple requests were out of the question.

"Inuyasha, I'm out of lead, may I-"

"Blow me." Not even a glance up from the desk surface.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Not from _your_ dry-ass mouth."

"Wouldn't wanna catch herpes from you anyway."

"Thought you already had it."

Silence. Tense, angry, irritable silence.

By this time Miss Norris lost interest in Inuyasha's antics. She needed not fight with him anymore. Just a simple glare was enough to get him gone fast, tail tucked (metaphorically speaking, of course). Naturally, he still remained to be seen before at least a minute _after _class started, which was a significant improvement from the five minutes late he normally arrived. Occasionally he got in with enough seconds to spare to steal another student's seat to avoid Kagome's presence. Only occasionally.

Inuyasha's janitorial duties kept him quite busy, and very aware of the lunchtime horrors with Kagome, so both avoided each other during meal time. That didn't stop Miroku, however.

He sauntered over to Sango's side during first lunch on a breezy Thursday. "Hello, my well-sculpted demon-slaying maiden."

Sango swallowed her bite of onigiri, and before taking another, snapped, "Hello, cock-sucker."

He grimaced and scratched the side of his face. "Ouch."

Sango stopped mid-chew and glanced up. "Wow, not even going to deny it? Why am I not surprised?" As she finished grinding the substance into digestible bits, she reached her foot to the side and stomped it on Miroku's ankle.

The sting and burn radiated to his skull. He bit his lip, bade her farewell as she snidely smiled back, and hobbled away to his actual friends.

Kagome snickered. "You have to at least give him credit for his persistence." She scooped some udon noodles and slurped them up graciously.

Sango replied dully, "His persistence…. Yeah, in trying to get laid." A gulp of soda. "I mean, I know I'm quite the sexy beast, but I'm sure there are hundreds of sexy, skanky, desperate girls just waiting to spread their legs for him. Why doesn't he just go after one of _them_?"

Stirring the noodles with her chopsticks, Kagome shrugged and scoped the room. "He probably already has. Now he's looking for a challenge." She winked at her friend and laughed.

Sango sneered and let out a small sarcastic "ha" before going back to focus on her meal.

Yuka came from the vending machine around the corner, popping open a Coke as her rear slid along the bench. She leaned in across Kagome. "So… what's the deal with you and Inuyasha?"

Both Kagome and Sango sighed in frustration. Sango spoke up first. "Did you forget about last year or were you too busy swooning to even pay attention?"

Ignoring the blow to her quality of friendship, Yuka clicked her tongue. "No, I know, but I mean, I thought that was resolved."

Now slouched and rather melancholy, Kagome's eyes flickered to Inuyasha with his arm around Kikiyou, then back to her cold food. "Yeah, well, it doesn't mean we have to _like_ each other." Her head rested on her free palm, elbow planted on the table surface.

Pondering for a moment, Yuka peeked over her shoulder to the half-demon. "So… does that mean I get to like him?"

Eyebrows furrowed, mouth agape, Sango threw a clump of rice at Yuka's head, which forced an 'ow' and focused attention. "Yuka! Honestly!"

"Go for it," Kagome interrupted solemnly.

Sango halted her rage and cocked her head to her best friend. "You're kidding me, right?"

"She can do what she wants. But Inuyasha's got Kikiyou."

This level of surprise became disbelief. "But, she's seen—" she turned to Yuka "—you've seen how horrible he is! You've seen what a completely arrogant, hollow wad of dick he is! You know how he treated, and still treats, Kagome—" she whisked her palm to her right to reference Kagome "—and yet you're still completely blind and naïve—"

"Sango," Kagome attempted to interrupt.

"—and _conceited, _of all things—"

"Sango!" She gripped her friend's wrist. Sango exhaled and yanked her hand free in order to stuff the rest of her onigiri unnecessarily into her mouth. Or maybe it was necessary. "It's okay, really. No point in getting so upset over it."

Muffled due to extreme rice overload, Sango growled, "I'm fo forry if I wabba pwopec my bef fwien fwom fupibiby."

An eyebrow perked up followed by a shake of her head and a snicker. "You're lucky I love you as much as I do."

Yuka bit her lip, embarrassed. "Yeah, you're right, Sango." She fiddled with the can top. "Sorry Kagome. I guess… I just forgot."

If only it were that easy for Kagome.

Sango jutted her fingers, palm up, in Yuka's direction while directing her attention to Kagome. "Anb fee? If wok."

Yuka narrowed her eyes at her in confusion.

Kagome translated, "It worked."

**0000**

Friday was another day.

Ms. Norris pushed her brown, plastic, thick-framed glasses up her nose and observed the class as the bell shimmered to silence. Each student hushed instantly at the last ring. This pleased her, though not enough to cancel her impending quiz of doom as she liked to call it.

"All right, people, you have ten minutes to take this. There are only four questions, so you should have plenty of time." She licked the tips of her thumb and index finger with a sly grin. Four extremely in-depth questions, ten points each. Let's hope they studied. Her dampened fingers counted out the number of persons in each row as she passes them the typed quiz questions.

A loud bang broke the silence as Inuyasha came bursting through the door, gasping for air. "I'm here!" he panted obnoxiously.

One eyebrow perked as Ms. Norris placed her hand on her popped hip, foot tapping. "Yes, I noticed, thank you. That's quite enough of your antics. Leave."

He groaned. "Augh, come on! This is the closest to on time I have ever been!"

She shook her head. "Exit the door through which you entered."

Under his breath, he hissed a frustrated, "Suck my dick", as he scuffled on his heel back toward the door."

"Oh, and, Inuyasha."

Every muscle locked. He slowly peeked over his shoulder. "Yes, Ms. Norris?"

"I'm sure your principal would be right pleased to do that deed in my place when you see him in a few minutes." She smiled snidely. "Which, of course, you will."

He winced, cursing himself mentally for not utilizing his brain-to-mouth filter. "Yes, ma'am."

Proudly grinning, she turned and continued handing out her nightmare quiz. "Good boy, now, off with you."

Kagome snickered quietly. Beside her, Eri shook her head, whispering, "That boy will never learn."

The door slammed bitterly behind Inuyasha as he slumped off to the principal's office—a common occurrence with him. A thump echoed against the wall beside the door. It was most likely Inuyasha's fist colliding with it. Or his head. Ms. Norris paid no mind and finished giving each student a quiz. Silence continued as the students worked.

Kagome was finished in five minutes. Feeling proud, she glanced around the room. Many other students had their palms planted against their foreheads in distress; a few tapped their pencils or feet. This must have been a difficult quiz. This caused Kagome to second-guess herself, but a closer examination of her answers only confirmed her correctness. Uncertain, she brought her finished quiz to the teacher. Ms. Norris seemed pleasantly surprised. History must be Kagome's best subject.

Zen growled to himself, "Over-achiever."

Ms. Norris simply snapped, "Bite your tongue, slacker."

He dipped his head.

"Uhm, Ms. Norris, may I go to the restroom?" Kagome decided to take advantage of her few spare minutes.

"Well, you certainly may. But be quick about it, yes?" She gave her a stern look.

Kagome smiled back. "Of course."

Down the hall and out into the courtyard, Kagome noticed Inuyasha wandering in the direction of the principal's office. Confused, she approached him, rather than heading to the restrooms. Five minutes and he still hadn't been to the office? It sure doesn't take that long to get there. His slumped, huffy disposition softened her approach. Rather than starting off accusatory, she decided now might be a good chance to mend their situation, while they were alone.

"Hey, Inuyasha."

He continued walking as if she hadn't spoke.

She caught up and whispered forcibly, "Hey!"

With a stomp of his foot he halted and pivoted to face her. She had caught up to him with a little too much momentum and bumped into his chest. His eyes widened, and he stepped back a bit. A scoff was his recovery. "What do you want, now?"

In a low voice, "It really doesn't have to be like this…"

Eyes narrowing, he seemed intrigued. "Do you want it another way?"

"I'd prefer it be less violent."

"Hey, it's gotten less violent."

"And angry," she soothed.

His face relaxed a bit. "I'm not angry."

She snorted without malice. "We can't even hold a conversation anymore."

"That was you—"

Hand held up to stop him. "Let's not get into that again. Please. I don't want to fight anymore."

He looked to the ground, silent.

"We don't have to be like this."

"Well why you tellin' me like I've gotta do somethin' about it?"

She sighed and scanned the environment, leaning her shoulders against the nearby wall. "Yeah, well, I know you too well to think you'd try to mend it. You've always been too proud and too arrogant."

Eyebrows furrowed in anger as he postured, taking a breath to speak, but again Kagome stopped him before he could launch the attack.

"I don't want to hear it. I don't want to listen to your blame games again. I already apologized. You have yet to accept it and get over it. Instead you keep attacking me on a level that's beyond passive aggressive."

He dug his hands in his front pockets with an inhale. Eyes glazed over off into the courtyard, squinting from the sun. After a couple of silent moments, he said softly, "I don't want to fight anymore either."

Relieved sigh. "Good."

"It's just…"

She rolled her eyes. "Please don't tell me you're having too much fun to stop being rude to me."

He cocked his head with a slight grin. "No." He glanced around, and finally met eyes. "I just don't know how else to be with you."

A few confused blinks later, "Why? Do you really hate me that much?"

He laughed with a hint of frustration. "No. God, no. It's just… last year… it was one way…"

"And then it was another. Which was all on you."

He huffed. "Yes, I know, already, okay, will you just let me finish a sentence for once?" A nod of her head and an apologetic stare let him continue. "That was me being comfortable with you. If I'm not calling you names and being mean, then I have to be nice which means… I'm just gonna go back to flirting with you like nothing happened." His boot scraped the dirt on the concrete as he eyed a rock.

For a good solid minute, an oddly comfortable silence lingered. Kagome broke it softly, "That's okay. I don't think it'll be too bad, and besides, I broke up with _you_, remember?"

"Tch, yeah… something about how I was being a jackass."

She grinned widely. "_Was_?"

He stuck out his tongue.

"How about we keep it strictly business? No insults, because we won't be talking unless it's class-related. Deal?" She held out her hand.

He stared at it for a few seconds before gripping it in a firm shake. "Deal."

Quickly and simultaneously they ripped their hands apart, skin still tingling from the touch.

"Right." He dipped his head and sped off under the archway, hands crammed into his pockets.

Kagome playfully called after him, "Hurry along now, your favorite person is waiting."

He scrunched his nose over his shoulder at her.

**0000**

The gym locker room fluttered with high-energy, noisy young girls. Kagome planted her bag on the bench beside her locker, twisting in the combination as Sango came in next to her.

"Hey, how's it going?" Sango ripped off her shirt and hung it carelessly on one of the four hooks in her already open locker.

"Well, something… bizarrely good happened." She placed her bag at the bottom of the tall metal locker, carefully slipping out of her nice shoes and uniform skirt.

Curious, Sango threw on her gym shirt. "Oh? You win the lottery?" She snickered with a wide smile, next stepping into her gym shorts.

Kagome raised her eyebrows and pursed her lips up in a thoughtful, "Hmm", pleased at this idea. Unless Inuyasha was feeling charitable, however, no money was involved. "Not quite. Inuyasha and I… talked it out."

Sango halted all movement. "…Oh? What did he bribe you with?"

Clicking her tongue and scolding Sango with her eyes, Kagome finished up her uniform by stepping into her tennis shoes and sitting on the bench to tie them. "It wasn't like that, Sango. I mean, he didn't exactly apologize, which is nothing new since he never has, but at least now we've agreed to take it down a few notches and be civil. I'm tired of fighting him."

Sango stared at the open locker unfocused as she reached for her tennis shoes. She let out a pensive, "Huh", as she thought through her friend's story. She sat on the bench to work on her shoes. "So, what exactly do you mean by 'talked it out'?"

"Well, he said he's being a jerk because he doesn't want to end up flirting again, but I think that's just his cover for saying he was hurt by the breakup. I think he might still be into me." Absent-mindedly, she shoved her remaining belongings into her locker and latches it.

Grinning madly, Sango simply stated, "Well, that whole kindergarten rule applies through adulthood."

Kagome gave her a sarcastic stare. "Yeah, so I gathered by the way you treat Miroku. You were always just too mean to him for it to be normal." She laughed mockingly and then stuck out her tongue.

"Ooh, yeah, okay, you think you are just sooo clever." Sango stomped up to her feet and forcibly locked the metal door before fisting her hips. "You know, just 'cause you and Inuyasha are all buddy-buddy now does not mean I have to interact with Miroku in any kind of humane manner."

"No, of course not. Your violence is a sign of affection, which he absolutely loves, hence the whole coming back for more…" Sango narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth, but Kagome simply grinned devilishly. "Please, don't stop on my account."

**0000**

During lunch, Eri joined the girls with a male at her side. Sango and Kagome eyed each other knowingly, flirtatious grins intact.

"Hey guys, this is my friend Jansen."

His nearly white crystal blue eyes smiled for him as he slid beside Eri, across from Sango and Kagome.

The two didn't buy it. Sango smiled, "Uh huh. Nice to meet you, Jansen."

Eri widened her eyes and mouthed a hush command as the two giggled. Kagome's eyes drifted upward in time to see Inuyasha and his boys passing by. He grinned quietly to her. The corner of her mouth perked up in response. He continued about his business.

Miroku waved, "Hey, Sango!" He carried on his path, nodding his greeting to the others sitting around Sango. He followed Inuyasha without a second glance back as they found their way to an empty table.

Sango gawked after him in disbelief. Her eyes zipped to Kagome, almost shrieking, "Did you see that?" Kagome snickered. "I mean…" Sango cleared her throat and calmed her tone. "Not that I'm complaining or anything, but he didn't even _hint _any unnecessary sexual advances." She stabbed into her Tupperware of stir-fry.

"Right. It's not bothering you at all," Eri piped in.

An evil glare was shot in her direction.

"He must have moved on." Kagome jokingly patted Sango on the shoulder. "Don't be too hurt. Not everything lasts forever."

Zen and Miroku stood from their newly claimed table, money in hand, heading for the food counters. As they passed the girls, Zen made sure to speak up. "Winter's coming a bit early this year."

Miroku commented, "Yes, I did notice it getting quite cold at night."

"It's too bad you don't have someone to keep you warm."

Miroku slyly peeked over at Sango, as if timing this conversation just right so that as he reached her in passing, she would hear him say, "Na, Sango will be keeping me nice and toasty this winter."

Her face flushed hot, and she reached out a foot and aimed to trip him, but missed horribly. Attempting to conceal her blushing grin, she went back to stabbing at her food as the boys passed.

Eri cackled. "Do you feel better now?"

Sango's eyes widened as she shot her gaze to Eri with a hiss. "What are you talking about?"

She shook her head. "Oh, nothing."

**0**

Zen slammed a solid palm on his friend's back. "Points for effort."

Miroku shrugged. "She didn't actually commit any violence upon me, so I think I'm ahead of the game." He purchased an apple and a burrito at the window.

Zen ordered a raw steak. Only in a demon school are raw steaks on the menu.

Gagging quietly, Miroku scoffed. "I can't believe you actually eat that."

"Pfft, don't judge. My body thrives on this stuff." His double layer of paper plates sagged under the pressure of bloody juices with the raw meat.

They headed back to their table. "I bet you also hunt with your bare hands."

Zen stuck out his tongue. "I'm civilized, thank you."

They sat beside each other across from Inuyasha.

Taking a break from Kikyou's mouth, he nodded in Miroku's direction. "How's it going on the Sango front?"

Zen spoke first. "So far just a lot of blood and broken bones, but no dismemberment has occured."

"Ah, progress."

Miroku snickered. "Yeah, well, I think I came on with just the right force. Her defenses are weakening." He perked his eyebrows up with a toothy grin as he bit into his burrito.

Inuyasha tapped his silver watch. "Time's a-wasting."

He stuck out his tongue.

Inuyasha chuckled as he bit into his extra meaty, triple paddy bacon cheeseburger. In his peripherals, he caught the figure of a familiar male with light brown, fluffy human hair approaching Kagome. Closer inspection revealed that he was Hojo. Cheeks round with food and chewing ferociously, Inuyasha turned his full gaze to his second least favorite person. He snorted as Kagome smiled pleasantly to Hojo and invited him to sit with her.

A muffled attempt was made to throw some insults, but his friends simply stared, puzzled at him. He shook his head toward the quickly overflowing table where Kagome sat. Miroku and Zen simultaneously followed his gaze.

Zen scoffed, "I was wondering when he was going to step on in after you. Took him long enough."

Inuyasha swallowed half of the food in his mouth, and managed to grumble, "It's not like she'd go for him."  
Kikyou glared at him. He dipped his head shamefully but still mouthed a snooty, "What?"

Eyebrows raised, Zen sliced off another chunk of steak, stabbing it with his fork and taking the bite. "No, of course not."

**0000**

"You're going out with Hojo?"

The two best friends settled into seats just inside the door of their Literature class.

Kagome grinned. "Well, it's just a date, but yeah. I figured, why not?"

Surprisingly, Inuyasha sauntered through the doorway. Kagome watched him, befuddled at his sudden timeliness, as Sango continued, "Yeah, but, he asked you with a little bit of short notice, don't you think?"

Inuyasha's ear twitched.

Kagome shrugged. "Eh, just by a day. Normally I'd consider turning him down because of that. But I have no plans." From the corner of her eye, she watched Inuyasha find a familiar face and sit beside him. She couldn't help being so confused. Why did he suddenly find the urge to be on time to class? Maybe it was a fluke.

However, he was actually sitting in his desk _before _Kagome arrived for French, and he even gave her a very small smile for a hello as she entered the room. How bizarre. If she had known that all it took for peace was a simple conversation, she would have brought it up months ago.

On her way to her locker after Physics, Inuyasha rushed to catch up with her.

"Hey!"

Her eyebrows scrunched as she twitched her head around to find the source of the voice. Inuyasha slowed to a walk beside her. Puzzled, she pleasantly greeted him. "What's up?"

"So, you know how we have that test in History next Friday?" He gripped the left strap of this bag, his other hand in his pocket.

"Uhm… yes…" She resisted the urge to add a snide, "I'm surprised _you _remembered."

Was that the cute, adorable grin with which she was so familiar forming on his lips? His eyes seemed to sparkle with hope. What was happening? "Well… I was wondering if maybe you wouldn't mind helping me out tomorrow."

_Whoa_. She was taken aback. A stuttered reply, "Uh, sure, except, I have plans tomorrow."

Both of his ears flickered back. He tried to act nonchalant. "Oh." His tone, however, was slightly moist with contempt.

Kagome snickered quietly. "How about Sunday, though?"

He bit his lip as they stopped at the metal door. As he spun the lock, he almost considered telling her that Sunday wouldn't work, that it would have to be Saturday… but he knew she wouldn't fall for that. "Yeah, sure." He whipped open the locker, slightly annoyed.

Kagome perked up an eyebrow, mouthing a confused, "Ooh-kay…" She leaned against the other lockers. "So, what time?"

After stuffing his books in his bag and swinging it over his shoulder, he made to slam the locker shut, but as the door passed his face, reminding him Kagome was on the other side, he clumsily caught it and cleared his throat. "How about three?"

She narrowed her eyes at him with a small grin at his nearly successful door-slam. "Sure." She nudged him out of her way with her shoulder. Reaching in, she grabbed her History book and gently locked the metal door, sauntering away with a wave over her shoulder. "See you later!"

**0000**

After a few unnecessary hours of Yuka pampering and primping Kagome to perfection, Kagome was finally able to meet Hojo. She shot Sango her last complaint text for the night: "Remind me never again to tell Yuka when I have a date."

She answered the door with a smile, and Hojo answered with an even bigger one.

"Hi Kagome! You look beautiful!"

Pink flushed across Kagome's cheeks (though not very noticeably under so much foundation, courtesy of Yuka) as she glanced to the ground. "Oh, thanks, Hojo."

Yuka squealed a little from around the corner. Kagome glared over her shoulder to see her friend's eyes peeking around the hallway wall. With a sigh she nudged Hojo out the door. "Shall we go?"

Door shut behind them, they sauntered down the path to the steps of the shrine. "What movie did you want to see, Kagome?"

One hand gripping the purse strap over her shoulder, she hummed thoughtfully. "Well… how do you feel about zombies?"

Hojo raised an eyebrow. "Uhm…. They're not exactly my favorite. The idea of crazy cannibals running around ending the world is not on my list of enjoyable themes." He glanced to see her disappointed expression. "I'm actually surprised it's something you're into."

She smiled and let out a small laugh. "Why is that?"

Hands in his pockets, he shrugged and held his shoulders in elevation for a full two seconds. "Well… you're just… so sweet and kind. People killing people and tearing them apart isn't a very philanthropic occurrence."

"Haha!" A small snort followed that cackle, and she cleared her throat and wiped her nose like it didn't happen. "Yeah, it's my guilty pleasure. Besides, the movie that's out is mostly a romantic comedy… just with zombies." Hojo didn't seem convinced. "But we don't have to see that. Anything you'd like to see?"

"I do like chick flicks…"

**000**

Sun shining bright in the crisp blue sky, Inuyasha inhaled deeply through his nose, taking in all the smells of nature from atop his four-wheeler. Miroku pulled up next to him, a cloud of dirt surrounding them like smoke. Inuyasha half-glared at him from behind his sunglasses.

"Thanks for choking up my fresh-air smell," he yelled over the roaring engine.

Miroku shrugged, leaning forward in the seat, hand resting on the center of the handlebars. "I'm not as cocky as you when it comes to maneuvering these forests."

"In other words, you're a slowpoke." He smiled big, the dirt on his face making his teeth seem twice as white.

"Yeah, yeah." He gripped the gears. "We goin' or what?"

Inuyasha gazed down the slope, which led to a small field of overgrown grass. A creek cut through it, leading into town. "Nah, man, I wanna take in the view."

Miroku shut off his motor and relaxed in the seat. Inuyasha's was already off and silent. Miroku looked around for openings in the trees to drive through, and then watched his friend staring off into nature. "Hey, what are you so somber about?"

"Hm?" He shook his head very slightly, as if to snap himself back into reality. He rested his left palm on his thigh, his right elbow on the handlebar, and leaned forward to surf the hills with his eyes. "I'm not. I'm just thinking."

Miroku's eyes widened under his sunglasses as he scrunched his eyebrows. "If there is only one thing I know about you, Yash, it's that you avoid thinking at all costs."

He glared at him over his shoulder. "Ouch."

"Come on, seriously."

A sigh escaped his lips as he gazed at the wilderness. "I dunno. It's just… teenagers are really sensitive."

"You say that as if you aren't one."

"Hah, no, that's my point. I'm not sure why the things that bug me actually bug me. Or why I fight with Kagome."

An eyebrow perked to the sky. "Well, that escalated quickly."

"What?"

"So we were talking about Kagome the whole time, or did you not notice how that just jumped in at the end there?" The corner of his lip slid to a smile.

He dipped his head with a chuckle. "Right… Man, what happened between us?"

"Are we still on Kagome or are you asking about you and me?"

Folding his arms, he leaned back in the seat. "Kagome. What was it?"

He exhaled through closed lips, making a sort of horse sound. "Gosh, Inuyasha… why are you asking me?"

"You were there."

"Not really. I'm just the third party. You guys hardly talked to me about it. One second you guys were fine, and then suddenly you were fighting and no longer talking. What was I supposed to do?"

A pensive silence followed for a solid minute. Inuyasha inhaled deeply again. "It was me."

Miroku shrugged. "You do have a short attention span."

He looked to his friend. "So, what, Kagome dumped me because I was too attention-deficit for her?"

"No, she dumped you because your attention became directed elsewhere."

He rolled his eyes. "Come on, that's dumb. There are other things in my world besides girls. Unlike yours." He grinned playfully.

"Hey, I like my world the way it is. But yours isn't supposed to be revolved around a woman. That's not what I'm talking about. Life outside of a girlfriend is expected. It's healthy. But you were too busy spending time with the _wrong_ girlfriend."

He sighed. "I wasn't cheating."

"You might as well have been." He raised his palms in a surrendering gesture. "Look, I'm no man of virtue, so I don't exactly have room to talk, but you can't honestly look back to last year and not be mad at yourself. I mean, if I could see it, I'm sure Kagome saw it."

Inuyasha ignited the ATV's engine and popped it into gear. "You're right." He sped along the ridge between tree trunks, leaving Miroku to fumble after him.

**0000**

After lunch on Sunday, Kagome caught herself feeling overly nervous to see Inuyasha.

On the same token, Inuyasha was standing at the stairs of her shrine a whole half hour early, pacing with the same nerves.

Kagome rushed back and forth through the house, tidying up that which was already tidy. She wiped down the kitchen table…. _Again. _Her mother quietly cut up a plate of strawberries, pineapple, and some raw vegetables for snacks. Kagome looked out the front window, rubbing her hands together.

"Dear, is everything all right?" Harumi grinned.

Kagome sighed in response. "Maybe this was a bad idea."

"It's only a study date."

Wide eyed, she whipped her head around to stare at her mother, exclaiming, "It's not a date!"

Harumi chuckled with a shake of her head. She handed Kagome the plate of sliced health snacks. "He'll be here soon, right?"

Kagome took the plate and centered it on the kitchen table, wiping her now sweaty palms on her sweatpants. "Yeah. I don't know why I'm so nervous." She breathed deep, taking her phone out of her pocket to shoot Sango a text message. "This isn't a date, so why am I so nervous?"

The clock rang three 'o clock exactly, and its chime mixed with the doorbell. Kagome pocketed her phone, rushing to the door as her mother went into the living room.

But her father, Kaito, beat her to it. He slid open the door and folded his arms at Inuyasha. The half-demon attempted a polite, fangy smile. "Good afternoon, sir."

Kaito seemed unimpressed, and a frown stayed glued on his lips.

Kagome peeked around the hall, realizing she didn't get to the door soon enough. Her much taller father stared silently down at Inuyasha. If he was trying to intimidate… it seemed to be working. Kagome winced to herself.

Inuyasha leaned back onto his heels, then his toes, awkwardly gripping his backpack strap. Kai never broke his gaze except to blink. The hanyou began to sweat. Digging up some courage, he met Kai's eyes and blurted out what he thought the father may want to hear: "I didn't come here to violate your daughter or anything, sir."

A few seconds passed, and suddenly Kai's lips widened into a grand smile and he cackled loudly before patting the young man solidly on the shoulder. "Good to see you again, too, son! Come on in!"

Inuyasha sighed in relief as Kai stepped away from the door to let him pass. He stepped over the threshold as the door slid shut behind him and Kagome came out from her hiding place.

"Hey," she smiled sweetly. Kai walked passed her, placing a hand on her shoulder and giving her a wink.

"Hey…" Inuyasha kicked off his shoes. Without thinking it through, he sputtered, "How was your date yesterday?" Instantly his eyes pinched shut, he dropped his head and slammed his palm to his forehead. _Dumbass._

Kagome blinked several times, taken aback. "Uhm, well, geez, you don't waste any time, do ya?"

"Sorry." He climbed the small stairs to the hall, passing Kagome and heading for the kitchen.

"How did you know I had a date?" She followed him as he plopped his bag on the floor next to him at the kitchen table.

His eyes lit up as he spotted the pineapple and strawberries. He quickly shoved one of each into his mouth and then peeked at Kagome from under his eyebrows, trying to look innocent.

Kagome folded her arms and chuckled. "Straight to the food."

Fruit bulging from his cheeks, he mumbled, pointing to his ears, "I have good hearing."

"Ah, right." She sat on the other side of the table where her notebook and textbook were already open and ready. "I guess I should've asked why it was the first thing that came out of your mouth, instead of, you know, 'hey how's it going?'". She perked an eyebrow at him as he slowly bent to a seated position across from her.

Swallowing, he croaked, "No reason. I was just all awkward from your dad's "I'm going to throw you into prison with my bare hands" look on his face. Guess it was the only thing I could think of." He shuffled through his bag, clumsily pulling out his books.

Unconvinced, Kagome grunted sarcastically, "Mm-hmm."

Kagome's phone buzzed. She flipped it open to read Sango's reply: "Maybe cause he's bipolar and you never know what wrong thing you could say to throw him off the edge? ;D" Kagome smiled to herself and shook her head, putting her phone away.

Notebook open, Inuyasha grabbed another slice of pineapple. "Thanks for the nummies."

Kagome grabbed a slice of zucchini. "Oh, my mom did it."

Inuyasha met her eyes. "Oh, so it was she who remembered that my favorite food in the whole universe is strawberries and pineapple?" He grinned.

Mid-chew, Kagome looked away with a smirk. "Well, just cause she did all the work, doesn't mean I didn't give her any ideas…." She beamed back at him.

An unconscious smile spread along his face as he flipped through his textbook. "Well, thanks."

**0000**

A/N: Kay, you're welcome. This took me forever cause I just kept going back and correcting stuff and adding changes… it was ridiculous. Plus I keep coming up with so many ideas! I didn't originally plan so many details, so this is supper difficult for me. Please comment and let me know you're still interested in this, otherwise, no chapter five for you!


	5. An Unpleasant Surprise

A/N: Kay guys… I split chapter 4 into 4 and 5, to save me some time and also give you guys two chapters really close together (instead of, you know, decades later). Don't get used to it, though.

Note: I changed one word from the end of chapter 4. Instead of Inuyasha saying sorry, he says, "Guess not." This is crucial because I have made a point to mention several times that Inuyasha never apologizes for anything. I can't believe I didn't catch that before I posted it!

I now mark the start of flashbacks with **0000#** and the end with **#0000** in conjunction with italic font.

Also, if you'd like to see my complete cover for this story, visit my DeviantArt art/Locker-Partners-Cover-final-draft-361735594

I do not own "Inuyasha".

**0000**

**Locker Partners**

**Chapter Five**

**An Unpleasant Surprise**

Sango rushed to sit next to Kagome before their first class started. "Hey, you!"

Kagome smiled, "Hey!" She pulled out her notebook and pen.

The demon slayer tapped her fingers on the desk, staring at her friend with urging eyes. Kagome finally felt the glare and slowly and cautiously turned her gaze to meet it. "Yes?"

"Well, aren't you going to tell me how the date went?"

She scrunched an eyebrow. "I already told you… it was fine. Hojo's just, you know… Hojo."

Sango exhaled with a grin. "I'm not talking about _that _date."

One eyebrow arched in confusion. "What are you talking about? I only went on one date this weekend."

Shaking her head, she offered, "The one with Inuyasha…?"

Her hand covered her eyes. "No, Sango, it wasn't a date! I told you!"

She giggled. "Okay well you spent one-on-one time with each other for the night—"

Jutting her index finger in her friend's direction, she defended, "For three hours! That is _not_ the night. And it was in the middle of the day."

"Whatever! It was still one-on-one! So how did it go? The last thing I heard from you was how nervous you were." She pulled her school supplies onto the desk as Inuyasha walked into the room. The two girls eyed him stealthily, becoming very hush. He nodded his head in their direction. Sango grinned deviously back at him as Kagome returned his greeting.

As he passed to his seat across the room, Kagome leaned quickly into her friend's space and hissed, "Hush, you!" She tapped her ear with her index finger and then gestured at Inuyasha. Sango nodded in understanding, and then picked up an invisible phone to fake-text message on it. Kagome rolled her eyes and then sent her a stealth text with her phone in her lap. "It was actually super pleasant. We didn't snap at each other over ANYTHING."

Sango read the text and smiled at her friend. Her reply text read, "So then it WAS a date." She waited for Kagome to read it so that she could wink at her.

Ferociously, Kagome typed back, "STOP IT! You little brat!"

Her friend smiled proudly at this supposed insult.

After class, the two friends parted ways, leaving Kagome to awkwardly walk near Inuyasha to their next shared class, silently, but proximate enough to seem like they were walking together. She chuckled and shook her head. Inuyasha smiled at her before picking up the pace to disappear into the crowd.

On the opposite route, Miroku went out of his way to cross paths with Sango. He caught up beside her with, "Hey, beautiful!"

Phone in hand, Sango's gaze shifted from it to the sky with a fierce rolling of her eyes and a sigh. "Oh, God, Miroku… I do not have the energy to deal with you right now." She glared warily at his hands. He lifted them defensively. "Are we gonna have to go through this every time you get near me?"

"Hey, they're going away, see?" He crammed them into the front pockets of his deep navy blue slacks. Sango didn't seem convinced, but he ignored her mean glare. "So… what's your favorite color?"

She stopped dead in her tracks, dropping her arms to her sides. "Come again?"

He, too, stopped, and angled his body to face her. "What? You didn't like the question?"

She narrowed her eyes and snapped, "Pink."

Lips pursed, he challenged, "Mmm… I sincerely doubt that."

She shrugged. "Kay, you're right. It's blue."

He grinned. "That's a good color. Mine's violet."

Both eyebrows shot up as she attempted to hide her mocking grin. "Violet?"

"I know, kinda girly."

"I never see you wear anything remotely purple."

He smirked. "So you notice what I wear?"

Her gaze dropped to her shoes momentarily before she went on the offensive. "…Only when you're acting like a giant penis in my general vicinity."

Hands still in his pockets, he shrugged. "Fair enough. My socks are purple, though."

Mouth agape, she cackled. "Serious?"

Balancing on one foot, he bent his other knee, reaching just above his shoe and lifting his pants a little to reveal his ankle. Sure enough, a tall, violet and black argyle sock confirmed his story.

She covered her lips with the tips of her left fingers to conceal her giggle. _That's kind of adorable_.

The warning bell chimed, reminding the students they had a minute to get to class. Miroku replaced his foot to the ground and waved with a smirk, walking the opposite direction Sango was headed. "Later."

Bewildered, Sango rushed to class, a small grin carved into her face.

**0000**

Clattering metal echoed throughout the locker room. The class finished laps early enough to fit in a shower before the next class. Kagome wrapped a towel around her wet body and headed to her locker beside the half-dry, half-dressed Sango.

Shaking her head to dry her hair, Sango piped, "So, Hojo seemed to be in an extra good mood today, trying to get your attention and all."

Kagome squeezed her hair into her towel. "Oh, yeah… I think he wants to take me out again."

She cackled, slipping back into her regular bra. "How cute!"

A slightly disappointed sigh escaped her lips. "I _want_ to like him, it's just—"

Suddenly a chorus of gasps and screeches erupted from the other side of the facilities, toward the entrance. A male's voice called out, "Kagome!"

The two best friends froze, gaping at each other.

"KAGOME!"

Around the showers came Inuyasha, furious as about the same time the previous week. His eyes scanned and then locked on Kagome. Sango instantly snatched up her towel to cover her minimally dressed body.

Jaw dropping, Kagome tightened her grasp on the towel around her torso and hissed, "Inuyasha what the heck are you doing?!"

He stomped right up to her, approaching rapidly close. Kagome leaned back until her calves hit the bench and her shoulders landed on the metal surface behind her. He only stopped when his palm slammed on the lockers, his other fist on his hip. His eyes glared into hers, the proximity being too… proximate.

"What's this about us hookin' up?"

Perplexed, Kagome blinked, mouth snapping shut and eyebrows battling. "Huh?"

A growl rumbled in his throat. "You haven't heard? Apparently we're having an affair."

Sango snorted and then broke out into a miniature fit of laughter.

Kagome attempted to stifle her grin. "That's just nonsense."

"Well somebody sure doesn't think so. Why do you think that is?"

The laughter stopped, and it became clear how silent it was in the locker room. One of Kagome's eyebrows perked upward. She folded her arms, grin vanished. "Gee, Inuyasha, could it be because you're bursting into the locker room while I'm naked and wet to have a chat? Think maybe that's why?"

The angry expression diminished and his eyes wandered downward, realizing exactly what he walked into; a rush of red scattered across his cheeks as his eyes widened in alarm. He instantly stammered backwards. "Uhh…"

Sango half-heartedly struck him with her wet towel, disregarding the fact that she was half naked in front of him. "Genius." Another snort escaped as she chuckled.

Inuyasha's face lit up red. Voice cracking, he instantly went on the offensive. "Well what the heck are you doing being all naked!"

She gasped, astonished. "Are you kidding me? It's the locker room and I was all sweaty! Maybe _you_ should try showering once in a while!"

"Tch, I shower every night!"

She stepped toward him, on the attack, fists on her hips. "Obviously it's not helping!"

"What exactly are you trying to say?!"

"I think I just said it."

He shot his index finger in her direction. "All I wanted was to set the record straight here about you and me, and now you're being a brat!"

She laughed a little in disbelief. "I'm a brat? You came barging in here yelling at _me_! You're impossible to appease! I didn't do anything wrong. You're the toolbag, here!"

Sango cut in. "Hey, hey, I thought the fighting was supposed to be over!"

Kagome folded her arms with a huff. "He's a wild dog, what do you expect?"

Gritting his teeth, growling lowly, Inuyasha made to step forward when the gym teacher stormed in.

"Kashimo!"

His muscles locked up momentarily and spun around.

"Are you serious right now? Is it your life goal to get into as much trouble as possible?"

He shrugged. The bell buzzed. "Pretty much." He dashed around her and the showers and was out the door.

Ms. Satoro sighed, walking away and grumbling, "Why do we keep him around…"

Sango and Kagome chimed, "Good question."

**00000**

"Can you believe him?"

Heading to lunch, finally dry and clothed, Sango and Kagome laughed over Inuyasha's behavior. Then Miroku appeared at Sango's left, shoving passed Kagome. She scoffed, but he ignored her.

"Sango, it's really a crying shame we don't hang out more. I'd really like to get to know you better, as a person." Now walking beside her, he stuck his left hand in his front pocket.

"Oh please, Miroku, we both know what it is about me you'd like to get to know better."

"Do you really think so lowly of me?" His free hand stealthily moved to her bottom.

"You brought it on yourself. It might help if you didn't greet me with your hand cupping my ass." She jutted her elbow into his diaphragm.

He grunted and keeled over. Sango continued to strut along, grinning proudly. She looked around for Kagome, but her friend was nowhere in sight.

Struggling for air, and to stand, clutching his stomach, Miroku coughed, "Why do you have to punish me so harshly?"

Sango pivoted on her heel to face him. "Maybe because you like it."

When Miroku had pushed in between the two girls, distracting Sango, Inuyasha stepped in and snatched Kagome by her upper arm, pulling her around the corner of the hallway. Despite her protests, he forced her against the wall, yet gently.

"Hey, what's your problem, now?"

He placed his palm on the wall beside her head. "Look, I just wanted to let you know that I didn't mean to get so forward with you."

"Is that an apology?"

He scoffed. "I got nothin' to apologize for."

She fisted her hips. "Are you serious right now? Do you even know the definition of apology?"

His irises nearly disappeared in his upper lid with the ferocity of his eye-roll. "Okay, chill out, geez."

Slightly relaxing her tense shoulders, Kagome sighed, quietly cooing, "Okay, what is it?"

Fangs nibbled his bottom lip pensively. "I guess someone turned our study session into a date."

Shaking her head, Kagome chuckled, "So what? Why does it bother you so much?"

He hissed, "Because we have a history."

"That's key. Past. History. No longer happening."

Inuyasha became aware of a group of people passing them, and some staring. He pushed away from the wall and Kagome a good two feet. "It's also the precedent."

"Wow, big word for you."

He scoffed, folding his arms. "Shut up. My dad's a lawyer."

Eyes narrowing, she stared at his face for a few solid seconds, despite his clear discomfort. That's when it hit her. Her arms crossed over her ribs. "Kikyou's jealous, huh?"

His eyes went wide, and he began to fumble over his words. "Wha—what, you think my girlfriend controls every aspect of my life?"

"Come on, if she's upset you fix it. It's what you do when you love someone."

His hands slipped into his front pockets as he glanced downward, slightly awkwardly, mumbling, "Not if you're me."

Meanwhile, Miroku managed to leap to his feet with surprisingly impressive swiftness, as if he didn't just have the wind knocked out of him. He folded his arms with a tilted head. "What makes you think I like pain?"

Sango placed her palms above her hips, trying not to let her face express the astonishment she felt. "Because for the past two years, you have relentlessly attempted to get into my pants, but have only been greeted with my fists each time. So either you're a slow learner, or you like it."

Both hands went into his front pockets as he stepped forward, dipping his head downward and to the side, pursing his lips in small thought with a long shrug of his shoulders. "Mmm, or, maybe it has less to do with me, and more to do with you." His eyes met hers as he slyly hooked his index finger through the belt loop on her uniform skirt and pulled her hips against his. She glared at the contact and leaned her thoracic spine backward, resisting. His other hand grasped her waist. "Maybe it's because you're special that I keep being so persistent." He grinned deviously.

Her palms flatted against his chest and she shoved him back a foot, causing him to release her and stumble. "Being treated like a sexual endeavor does not make me feel _special_, you asshole." She landed one resounding thud with her fist against his sternum before pivoting and sauntering away.

Rubbing the aching bone, he called after her, "You don't hit as hard as you used to!" He grinned to himself. _Which means it's working_.

**00**

"There you are!" Sango finally found her best friend after a short trip to the restroom. Kagome had her arms folded, solemnly hanging her head. Sango rushed to her side as they walked to lunch. "Hey, what happened?"

Pensively, Kagome adjusted her backpack over her shoulders. Palms opened to the ceiling, she expressed her confusion. "What the heck is up with Inuyasha? I mean, is he really bipolar or something? One minute he's accusing me of starting a rumor, and the next he's…" She folded her arms again.

Sango gripped her backpack straps. "That rumor might actually be my fault… but…what did he grab you for?"

"I think he was telling me he loved me."

Almost tripping over herself, Sango came to a screeching halt, bringing her arms out in front of her in a "stop" motion. "Whoa, whoa, WHOA! Hit the brakes right now, sister. Can you please run that by me one more time?"

Finally meeting her friend's eyes, she replied, "I said to him that if Kikyou was jealous, he should fix it, cause that's what you do when you love someone…"

"…Okay?"

"And he said, and I quote, "not if you're me"…"

"No."

"Yes."

The two stared at each other in disbelief before Sango finally shook her head. "No, don't be a girl."

Eyebrows scrunched, she glanced around. "…Okay… let me call the nearest doctor."

"No, I mean, don't over-think it." She stomped over and looped her arm around her friend's elbow, encouraging her to keep walking. "He's just blabbing. That's what he does. He doesn't have enough dendrites to form really deep, around-the-bush sentences. He just means he's a screw up and he can't fix it with Kikyou. Doesn't mean that when he was with you he failed to fix it because he was in love with you. He failed to fix it because he _wasn't_ in love with you. Okay?"

Kagome nodded, though unconvinced. "Right." She stared at the ground as they walked. "Change subject please?"

"Miroku asked me my favorite color after first period."

Kagome scoffed, "What? How random."

"Yeah, then ten minutes ago he was right back to feeling me up. Talk about bipolar…. It must be a male thing." She grinned big at her friend.

Kagome smiled back. "Must be."

**000**

Inuyasha slid in between Miroku and Zen at one of the small round picnic tables in the courtyard during lunch. "Hey, boys, nice change of scenery."

Zen tore into his Sloppy Joe, mumbling, "Kikyou's pissed so we're standing clear."

Inuyasha nodded once, pursing his lips. "Yeah. She gets that way. She'll come around." He drummed his hands on the table. "How did the distraction scheme play out for you, Miroku?"

The monk rubbed his chest. "She hit me quite a few more times than usual, though not nearly as roughly."

"When are you gonna pop the question?"

He nudged the hanyou with his elbow. "Hey, man, don't rush me. This is a process. You gotta woo a girl first. Or at least take her on a few dates."

He laughed with a groan. "I didn't mean the marriage question."

Miroku plopped a scoop of grilled vegetables in his mouth with a grin, muffling a full-mouthed reply, "I mow."

"How about you, Zen? How come you never seem to be chasing girls?"

Without breaking stride in his chewing rhythm, he replied, "I'm gay."

Miroku halted his jaw; Inuyasha stopped making music with the table. They both stared at him silently.

Still chewing, Zen, slowly turned his gaze to his friends and stared back. After a moment he swallowed, but still started silently at them.

Miroku and Inuyasha exchanged looks before the monk finally spoke. "Was that sarcasm?"

Zen grinned widely. "You guys are so easy. What if I _were_ gay? Does that weird you out?"

Inuyasha shrugged. "Actually, it kinda makes sense."

Miroku glared at his half-dog friend. "You're kidding, right?"

Zen rolled his eyes with a sigh. "No, guys, I like vaginas. I'm just exceedingly unimpressed by the female populace here, and I am working really hard at school so I can get scholarships for college. If a girl comes around who catches my eye, then I'm in. Otherwise, I have better things to do."

The woman-loving Miroku almost choked on his vegetables. Inuyasha slammed his fist to his back, helping him cough the food out of his windpipe. Clearing his throat, he countered, "No you don't! What is better to do than _girls_?!"

Inuyasha slammed his forehead to the table surface, cackling uncontrollably in slight embarrassment.

Zen shook his head. "You're disgusting, Miroku."

**000**

By the time French class rolled around, Inuyasha had already fixed things up with Kikyou. It was easy to do, since she saw how much he and Kagome were _not_ interacting. However, if all it took was a conversation between Kagome and Inuyasha to set off Kikyou, it would be a long, agonizing relationship.

Inuyasha slid next to Kagome at their desks, silently, just as the 'words of the day' lit up on the projector screen. She watched him from the corner of her eyes. He took out his notebook and began writing. After a moment, he started drawing circles in the corner with his pen, but each stroke became lighter. He beat the tip on his paper, frustrated. The pen had dried up. With a low growl he tossed the pen to the page, where it bounced off and rolled along the floor. He dropped his temple into his palm, elbow on the desk surface, sighing deeply.

Reaching into her bag, Kagome grabbed her spare blue pen and gently slid it along his notebook before going back to her own work. Before he could make eye contact, she rested her forehead in her left hand, looking down at her paper. Inuyasha grinned stealthily to himself as he picked up her pen and went back to writing. He whispered, "Thanks."

She smiled from under the cover of her forearm.

At the end of class, he made to return the pen, but she shook her head with a polite smile. "Keep it."

In Physics, he sat across the room with Kikyou. They were nudging each other's feet across the aisle, giggling. Kagome rolled her eyes before planting her cheek on the ball of her hand. Seemingly uncontrollably, her eyes kept shifting over to the obnoxious couple. They finally stopped playing footsies to take notes. Inuyasha glanced over to Kagome. She quickly locked her gaze to the board. He grinned.

A few seconds later, her phone buzzed in her skirt pocket. She flipped it open under her desk and peeked at the text message. It was from a number she recognized, but wasn't in her phone book. The text read, "I saw that." Her eyebrows battled over the bridge of her nose in confusion. She glanced around the room, looking for the source. Inuyasha winked at her with a fanged grin. That's why the number looked so familiar… it was Inuyasha's. She had deleted it after the breakup. _I can't believe he still has my number….More importantly, I can't believe he's flirting with me right in front of Kikyou._

Focusing on her phone, she added his number back into her phonebook and replied, "I have no idea what you're talking about… especially since your girlfriend is a foot away from you."

She watched him read the text. He winced shamefully and tucked his phone away, giving her an apologetic glance. Once the bell rang, she hurried to her locker, trying to beat him to it. She was successful in opening the locker before he entered the vicinity, but he was on the other side of the door as she closed it. A small, surprised jump was her greeting.

He crossed his arms over his muscular chest. "Couldn't keep it open for me, eh?"

She pursed her lips, the edges creasing into a grin. "You were too ninja-like." She stepped back, offering the lock to him with an outstretched hand. She dipped her head in a farewell and began to walk away, but he stopped her.

"Hey, wait, I have a question."

Books held to her stomach by extended arms, her hands gripping the bottom, she twirled to face him. "Shoot."

Spinning the lock, he inquired, "Think maybe we could review Thursday for the test?"

"Again?" Her tone was more of surprise rather than protest.

He shoved his remaining books from his bag into the locker. Kagome tilted her head in confusion at this, but shrugged it off as him just being lazy. "Yeah, I mean, a last-minute cram."

She bit her lip. "Uhm… I dunno, Inuyasha. Do you think that's such a good idea?"

Slamming the door, he swung his near-empty bag over his shoulder. "Well… you're the smartest person I know for history."

"Why don't you and Zen study, instead? I… can't." Without giving him a chance to object, she dashed off down the locker aisle to meet Sango at her car.

**000**

"… then he pulled up his pant leg, and sure enough, he had these purple argyle socks on. It was kinda cute."

Kagome huffed and crumpled her nose down at her friend. "Sango, you're kidding, right?"

The demon slayer scrunched her eyebrows, pausing with the 150-pound barbell just above her breasts. "What?"

"Miroku is a pig!"

"….You weren't attacking me about him last week." She racked the bar above her head and sat up to face her friend.

Kagome folded her arms. "That's because last week I never thought you'd seriously consider going out with him."

Sango stood, removing the weights from the bar and placing them in their corresponding slots. "Well last week I _wasn't_ seriously considering it."

"Were you considering it at _all_?"

She walked over to take Kagome's place as spotter as the much less muscular girl lay down on the bench. "It might have crossed my mind once or twice."

Kagome lifted the 45 pounds from the rack and brought it down to her chest before pressing it upward again. She grunted, "I know he's kinda cute, but he has no redeeming qualities."

Sango rested her palms on either side of the bench press posts. "I knew him before I knew you, remember?"

"Yeah…. So?"

She sighed. "He wasn't always so perverse."

"That's because he hadn't hit puberty yet." She struggled with her tenth repetition, and Sango helped her rack the bar. She looked up at her friend. "He didn't know what sex was."

Shaking her head, Sango reiterated, "He was still excessively horny, but he wasn't so forthright about it. He used to just flirt a lot with compliments and flowers."

Eyebrows arched. "Flowers?"

"Yes, okay, once he brought me flowers."

"You never told me that!"

"Well… that's because he promptly grabbed my butt and gave it a good, solid squeeze."

Her eyes squinted shut with a giggle. "Not surprising." She lifted the bar again for another set.

Sango bit her lip. "He was nice though, before that. Told me all sorts of great things about myself. But I never realized I wasn't the only girl he was flattering."

"Exactly!" Another repetition. "Which is why you shouldn't give him any advancement toward you at all… not even flowers. You deserve so much better."

Suddenly irritated, Sango snapped, "That's easy for _you_ to say, when you have guys lined up knocking on your door for a minute of your time."

Racking the bar, Kagome sat up. "What?"

She crossed her arms over her chest. "You don't get it, Kagome. Miroku is the only guy who's ever taken notice of me. You're all cute and sweet, and guys just fall all over you."

"No they don't!"

"Are you kidding me? You really don't notice? Come on, Kagome, think about it a second. I can name three off the top of my head, two of whom would fight to the death over you. The rest just wish from afar."

Eyebrows furrowed, she defended, "I don't have a line! You're way pretty. Guys want you, they're just too afraid to say anything cause you're so tough."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh please. Name one time you caught a guy checking me out. Besides Miroku."

Kagome fell silent.

"Exactly. So, I'm sorry if there's an allure to the one man who hasn't given up on begging for my time, even if he _is_ a jackass."

"Sango…. It's just where you're at right now."

"Oh, I am _so_ not in the mood for the 'it gets better' speech. Only beautiful people give that advice to ugly people."

"Sango, shut up for a minute!" She stood up and leaned against the bench press post to comfort her friend. "You are independent and strong and sassy as heck. You don't put up with anyone's bull crap, and you have a smile that could purify the evilest of hearts. But think about it: you go to a school full of demons! You come from a demon slayer bloodline—the best, actually. Why would any self-respecting demon try to date you?"

Sango's gaze shifted downward as she calmed. "I guess I never really thought about it that way."

"And any human male at this school is a weenie who is afraid you'd crush him with your bare hands. You don't want a guy like that anyway." She smiled soothingly.

Smiling back, she landed a soft punch to Kagome's shoulder. "Thanks."

Finished with their bench press sets, Sango came around the other side of the bench to Kagome's side. They turned toward the free weights, and a male who smelled surprisingly delicious collided with Sango as he came from around the squat assist machine. It was Miroku.

Sango's jaw dropped. His eyes widened as he removed his left ear bud, music blaring loudly from it. They stared for a second as a grin crawled across his lips. Kagome fisted her hips. "Here to harass women?"

Before he could answer, Sango accused, "I come to this gym at least three days a week, and I have _never_ seen you here. Like _ever_…. Are you stalking me?"

His eyebrows furrowed. "What on earth are you talking about? No, I'm not stalking you. I'm not a creeper."

She folded her arms and cocked her head. "Did you forget that one time you came to watch me pick up my brother from school?"

He dropped his head with an embarrassed "ha". Scratching his scalp, he countered, "That was a one-time, temporary lapse in judgment. This is different. I usually come here in the morning, which is probably why you don't see me."

She raised an eyebrow, doubtful of his story. "Prove it."

He mirrored her expression. "S'cuse me?"

"You heard me."

He looked around, trying to figure out ways to convince her. Then he grinned cleverly, locking gazes with her. This was a perfect opportunity to impress her. He quickly grabbed the bottom seam of his shirt with his right hand and pulled it up to his clavicle, revealing six definite tight abdominal bumps from his ribs to his belly button, and the start of two more below that. A thin, dark happy trail lined his linea alba just slightly. A defined serratus anterior peeked out just below the crease in his shirt.

Both girls' jaws dropped as their eyes widened. Miroku held his position for a few extra seconds to let the view sink in before dropping his shirt with smirk. "Believe me now?"

Kagome straightened up her expression instantly, but Sango was struggling for air a bit. Kagome nudged her and she snapped back into the present with a clearing of her throat. She squeaked, "That about does it for me."

Miroku chuckled quietly, "That's what _she_ said."

Sango sneered at him.

He noticed that they had just left the bench press station. "How much do you bench?"

She grinned proudly. "My max is one seventy-five."

His mouth popped open as he exclaimed, "Damn!" He scratched his head sheepishly. "That really hurts my ego."

She laughed. "Why, what's your max? One-fifty?" Her tongue escaped between her teeth with a giggle. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"Whoa, whoa, I'm not _that_ pathetic… Last I checked my max it was two-eighty." He winced, bracing for the blow.

She shrugged. "Not bad, for a scrawny monk such as yourself."

"Your demon slayer blood makes you kind of a cheater in that respect," he joked.

Uncrossing her arms, she spread her them to her sides with her elbows at ninety degrees and flexed, showing off her well-defined biceps. Miroku's eyes widened. "And I am damn proud of it." She nudged Kagome to follow before sauntering off passed him to the next station on the workout plan.

Miroku nearly drooled watching her hips sway as she walked away.

Kagome whispered, surprised, "He didn't even _try_ to grope you!"

Sango shrugged. "When you join the gym they tell you it's not a meat market. He'd get kicked out if he did." She peeked over her shoulder and watched him sit on the edge of the bench, tucking his toes under it, facing the bar. He bent backwards until his head touched the floor, and then came back up. Her eyebrows shot skyward. "I'm suddenly way more attracted to him now than I ever have been."

"Sango! Look away! Resist!"

**0000**

The next day, almost immediately upon exiting Sango's car, Kagome felt a gust of air pass her as a large hand cupped her lower back and then slid around to her waist. In the flurry appeared a blue-eyed, dark-skinned young man with a square jaw and shaggy black hair. His fangs sparkled with his smile, and even his pointed ears dipped backward with the effort. His voice was like crunchy almond butter.

"Kagome, my love, how I've missed you!" He swooped both arms around her torso, pulling her into an embrace, and spun her around a few times. She 'eeked' before he finally set her down.

Palms on his deltoids for support, Kagome exhaled. "Kouga… nice to see you too…" She glanced to her right to see Sango standing with arms crossed, tapping her toes in annoyance. "I thought you transferred out of this school…" She smiled nervously.

The wolf demon's smile seemed to be etched into his skin. "Well, we fixed the feud already, so I came back!" He cupped his palms around both of hers and held them near his chest. "I couldn't bear another day without knowing if you were all right."

An unenthused, timid laugh escaped her lips. "Uhm… Kouga, it's not like I live in a warzone or anything…"

Suddenly he frowned, glaring behind her. "You do when that _mutt_ is around." A low rumble vibrated in his throat. She followed his gaze to see a posturing Inuyasha growling back at him just feet away. His fists were clenched solidly at his sides.

Sango rolled her eyes. "Seriously, boys, is it the demon in you or is it just the canine DNA that causes you to act this obscenely?"

They both ignored her. Inuyasha stomped over and shoved Kouga away from Kagome. Secretly, she was glad for it. "I held a giant party in celebration of your absence! Weren't you supposed to _stay_ gone?"

"You throw a party for the sun setting, half-wit! I wasn't going to leave Kagome in your filthy, ungrateful paws forever!"

He shoved him back by the shoulders. "Oh, _I'm_ filthy? You reek of wet wolf and raw meat! Did you have a nice vacation sniffing other wild dogs' asses?"

Kagome tiptoed over to her best friend. "Should we do something about this?"

Sango shook her head. "It never worked in the past."

Looking around, her eyes caught onto Hojo walking by. She took advantage of this opportunity to escape. "Hojo!" She trotted to him. He smiled in greeting.

Claws dug into Kouga's hair, and Kouga's arm around the back of his neck to start a choke hold, Inuyasha's attention shot over to the next male obstacle. "Hey!"

Kouga pushed him down to finish the headlock. "Now look what you did! You scared her off!"

"_Me_?! It was probably your rank scent!"

The two scuffled on the concrete while Kagome chatted with Hojo.

"So I was thinking maybe we could go bowling this Friday," he offered.

"Bowling?"

"Yeah. At ten they shut off the lights and turn on black lights, and it becomes sort of like a rave. It'll be fun!"

Uncertain, Kagome glanced back to the brawlers, and despite her lack of romantic interest in Hojo, the sight of two nearly full-grown men rolling around in the dirt like puppies lead her to find the nicer, more civilized man a lot more intriguing. "You know what, that sounds like a blast! Why don't we make it a double date? I know a girl who's dying to win over this guy…"

Wide-eyed, Sango glared at Kagome warningly. "What are you talking about?"

She dipped an eyebrow. "Eri…?"

Relieved, she sighed, "Oh, right."

Inuyasha now had Kouga pinned to the dirt, his arms locked together under his chin and right arm. The talk of another date caught his attention. "What's that, over there?!"

Sango stomped her foot to the cement, fists at her side. "Will you two knock it off? Inuyasha, what are you fighting over? You have a girlfriend!"

The wrestling boys halted the struggle. Muffled due to his pinned jaw, Kouga grumbled, "Oh so you finally decided to break her heart and stick with Kikyou, huh?"

Inuyasha released him, rolled on his sacrum to his feet, snatched his bag and then swung it over his right shoulder. Left hand in his pocket, he trudged away without a word.

Kouga stood and dusted himself off, growling lowly. "Pig."

Hojo scratched his scalp awkwardly. "Uhm, did I miss something, Kagome?"

She smiled convincingly. "Not at all, Hojo! We are totally on for Friday. Pick me up at nine?"

Suddenly the wolf demon was in between them, arms folded. "So now you're making a move on my Kagome?"

Frustrated, she slammed her face into her cupped hands. "Sweet muffins, Kouga, we've been through this…" She lifted her gaze to the taller wolf man and pointed a parental finger at him. "I am not yours to fight over! We haven't even been on a date! You can't keep being a creeper about this!"

He narrowed his eyes before glaring back to Hojo. The timid human smiled politely. Kouga leaned in, his face towering down at Hojo's. He warned, "You do anything to hurt her—take advantage of her, cheat on her—I will personally tear your limbs from your body and then beat you to death with their bloody ends." Kouga zipped away, disappearing in a small cloud of dust.

Hojo had lost his smile, staring wide-eyed down the courtyard. "…He was serious, wasn't he?"

Kagome patted his shoulder comfortingly. "Only a lot."

**0000**_**#**_

_ The sky resembled a backlit canopy with hundreds of tiny holes punched in it. A low purple glow radiated just above the city, reminding the world of the recently set sun. After a relaxing climb up the shrine steps, Inuyasha inhaled deeply before knocking softly on the front door of the Higurashi residence. It seemed quiet, but he could hear what sounded like sobs. Soft footsteps made their way to the door. It opened about a foot, and Kaito Higurashi peered out from behind tired, swollen eyes. _

_ He sighed, "Oh, hello Inuyasha. What can I do for you?"_

_ "Evening, sir, sorry to bother you…" The sounds of the sobs were louder now, though still faint. He peeked down the hallway for the source. "Kagome left her math book at my house." He extended his arm out to hand him the aforementioned book which he had carried at his side._

_ Kaito wiped his brow, obviously stressed and exhausted, before gently taking the book from him. "Oh, thanks, son. I'll be sure she gets it."_

_ Hesitant, Inuyasha offered, "Is everything all right, sir?"_

_ Seemingly defeated, Kai simply sighed again. "We're having… a rough time. It would be best if you waited to see Kagome another day. Thanks again." He slid closed and locked the door, his footsteps fading away down the hall._

_ Hands in his pockets and eyebrows tight with concern, Inuyasha turned to walk away, but heard the muffled cries again. He perked his ears, focusing. The small, squeaking tone resembled Kagome's voice. He trotted around the side of the house and glanced to her partly opened window above the first floor's roof. A dim light shone through, and from this position near the house, he could better hear the sobs. Taking two steps back, he jogged forward and swung his arms as he bent his knees, pushing himself with a leap onto the roof. He landed with a not-so-soft thud, and Kagome gasped. He tiptoed to the window and forced it a little more open to peek inside._

_ Wide-eyed, Kagome had pushed her upper torso off of her bed to stare at the window, startled and afraid at the noise. Surrounding her were tissues stuffed into little balls. Red and wet-nosed with puffed eyes and tussled hair, she sniffled, "Hello?"_

_ Inuyasha poked his head around the window frame. "Hey, it's me."_

_ Her eyes squeezed shut as she groaned a small protest. "Inuyasha?" Another sniffle and she plopped herself belly-down back onto her pink comforter, resting her head on her pillow. "What are you doing?"_

_ Sliding the window all the way open, he swung his legs over and sat on the sill. "May I?"_

_ Blowing her nose into a new tissue, she buried her face. A muffled "Sure" was his welcome._

_ Taking off his shoes upon entering, he treaded softly to her bedside, sitting on the edge beside her hips. "I heard you crying when I came to bring you back your book… What happened?"_

_ The simple question ignited her bawling flame again. From the cushion of her pillow, she cried out a response Inuyasha couldn't understand._

_ "Hey…" He put a soothing hand on her shoulder. "You gotta get your face outta that pillow before you suffocate."_

_ She complied, turning her face toward him but resting her red cheek on the fluffy surface. With a sniffle, hand curled into a fist at her mouth, she blubbered, "Gramps is dead."_

_ His eyes widened slightly, ears falling back and his posture slumping in empathy. "Oh no…"_

_ "Yeah. He had cancer! Can you believe it?" She wiped her nose on her sweater sleeve with anther sniffle and sob. "He never told us, or anyone. He doesn't like doctors, you know…" She rolled onto her side and fidgeted with a tissue in her hands. "He always thought every disease could be cured by a good diet and lots of herbs… stupid old man." Her voice cracked and she began to weep again, folding her arms over her face._

_ Heat flushed over Inuyasha. He didn't know what to do. It wasn't very often anyone cried in his presence, let alone a pretty girl. His palms began to moisten. "I'm uhm… I'm really sorry Kagome."_

_ She curled her sweatpants-covered knees to her chest into the fetal position, hugging them and burying her face. "Me too, Inuyasha."_

_ The bed shook with the ferocity of her sobs. Inuyasha couldn't take it. He couldn't just sit there with her crying. He stood to leave, but the pathetic sounds coming from Kagome made him second-guess his decision. He returned to the bed and scooted his back against the wall on the other side of the weeping girl. "Hey," he soothed, gently grasping her arm and pulling her upright. Her sleeve was soaked in nasal mucous as she gave her nose another wipe. "Come here." He guided her next to him and brought her head against his chest. Uncertain, Kagome scooted her torso nearer and leaned her left shoulder against his ribs, her right hand holding a balled-up tissue to her nose and her hips touching his outer thigh as she snuggled in close. Inuyasha wrapped his right arm around her shoulders and his left around her bent arms, completely bundling her up in his embrace. _

_ "It'll be okay," he cooed._

_ Sniffling, she nuzzled her cheek into his meaty chest and cried herself quietly to sleep in his arms._

**#0000**

"Okay, so, even Kouga thought he was cheating on me."

Sango slowed her jog to Kagome's pace as they circled the soccer field for warm-up. "If it looks like a duck and sounds like a duck…"

Kagome breathed deep. "But he had his moments…"

"Moments of good don't outweigh days of bad."

"He swears he wasn't."

Snidely, Sango scoffed, "Oh yeah and he really proved that when he got with Kikyou right after the breakup."

The pace quickened. "They were friends before he and I were."

"So what? Maybe the problem is that he's part _dog_."

She shook her head, beginning to pant. "I don't think that's the part that's the problem… I think the problem is that he's part _human male._" They finished their third of five laps as she continued between breaths, "All the other dog-type demons I've ever known are super loyal. His human part of him resembles Miroku." She glared at her friend, hinting that Miroku, too, was unforgiveable.

Sango shrugged, breathing easily. "Whatever, all I know is he blamed his diverted attention on your supposed attitude change, even though your attitude change was because of his diverted attention."

"See, what I am hearing…. Is that we're both at fault."

Frustrated, she huffed, "No, you _should_ be hearing that he's a big jerk and you have better men from whom to choose."

She rolled her eyes. "Hojo?"

"Hey, I'm not knocking the possibility of Kouga, either. I'm not a racist." She stuck her tongue out jokingly.

"Oh, goodie…"

"He's loyal!"

"And territorial!"

"That's a _male_ condition, not strictly a canine condition."

"He's also kinda creepy."

Sango pursed her lips to the side pensively. "Yeah, I can't defend that one."

In the locker room after class, Kagome checked her phone to see a message from Inuyasha. It read, "Okay, how about we get one big study group together for Thursday, instead of just us? Is that better?"

Kagome blinked, confused. Biting her lip, she showed her friend the text. Sango shrugged. "At least in a group he can't get in a fight with you."

She glared. "You're kidding. He gets into fights in front of _teachers._"

Sango laughed. "See, now you're getting it!"

Kagome replied to Inuyasha, "Well now I feel like when we first started dating, and you took me to hang out with all of your friends so they could meet me."

Once she was dressed and walking out the door, her phone buzzed with his retort, "Wow you sure do know how to make awkward that which wasn't awkward to start." She simply grinned somewhat proudly and tucked the phone away.

Miroku dashed out of the male locker room opposite of the women's to meet Sango. Kagome eyed them suspiciously. Sango clutched her Trigonometry textbook against her chest as she halted in her tracks, staring wide-eyed as Miroku caught up to her. He smiled pleasantly.

"Hey."

Sango blinked, cautious. "Uh…. Hi?"

He chuckled, glancing to the concrete, shaking his head.

"I'd apologize but… well… you know that I'm not convinced, right?"

He met her deep brown eyes with his ocean blue gaze. "I know—"

"I mean, the last time you interacted with me like a normal human being for more than ten seconds, you destroyed all hope with your hand." She crossed her arms over her chest, around her book.

Awkwardly, he scratched the back of his shaggy-haired scalp and kicked the dirt, his left hand in his front pocket. "…Sorry for that."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Honest?"

He shrugged. "You obviously don't appreciate it all, so, yeah. Honest."

"Hm." Relaxing a bit, she shuffled her foot along the ground. "So… what's up?"

Now with both hands in his pockets, he stepped beside her, nodding his head to initiate a walk to lunch. Their pace matched, and Sango glanced over her shoulder to Kagome, giving her a wide-eyed glare. Kagome, palms upward, shrugged with protest before trudging along behind them, close enough to eavesdrop, but far enough to seem invisible.

Miroku continued, "I was wondering if you'd like to come to the gym with me later today?"

"You mean… together?"

He grinned. "Well… that's what I meant by 'with me'."

She bit her bottom lip. "Is that like… a date?"

He cackled, "I would just really appreciate a spotter, and you're stronger than most of the guys I know."

One eyebrow punched the T-zone above her nose. "…Thanks? But that didn't answer my question."

They rounded the corner of the cafeteria from the courtyard, and Miroku opened the door for her. She thanked him as she passed, and he eyed her firm glutes on the way with a smirk. Before she noticed, he replied, "Well, it would only be a date if we went for dinner after."

Her lips fought the urge to grin. "So _now_ you're asking me on a date?"

"Hah! Well… maybe?"

Walking a step ahead of him, she stopped and spun on her heel, placing her palm out to catch his chest and stop him in his tracks. She glared up at him. "It's going to take a lot more than shared sweat to get me to date you."

He narrowed his eyes and tilted his head in confusion. Hesitant, he cracked a small smile and offered, "That's… what… she said?"

Sango scoffed with an eye roll and gently slapped his pectorals before sauntering off to her usual table. Miroku smiled proudly to himself and headed to meet Inuyasha. On the way he passed behind Sango seated beside Kagome, who had caught up after she sat down, and hummed into her ear, "Pick you up at five." Without giving her the chance to object, he skipped away.

She gaped after him.

Kagome nudged her with her shoulder. "You're going out with him? Really?"

Sango shrugged, shaking her head with a chuckle. "He thinks I am, but I never turn down a ride to the gym. I will, however, turn down dinner."

**0000**

Wednesday, after arriving at school, Sango's phone chirped thrice, indicating either a sudden boost in her popularity status, or more incessant texts from Miroku. The latter was more likely, and as she found it to be true, she instantly regretted giving him her number after the gym. The messages were each a sentence long, together reading: "Are you even sore today? You wore me out. Wow that makes it sound like our night was a lot kinkier than it was."

A helpless streak of red scuttled across her cheeks and nose. Her fingers scampered a quick reply, "OMG you don't have any self restraint at all!"

"You have to admit… that sounded dirty."

She chuckled, covering her mouth and refusing to respond.

Kagome perked an eyebrow at her friend as they walked to the main entrance of campus. "…Yes?"

She shook her head. "Don't worry about it. Let it happen."

**0000**

At lunch Miroku gave Sango an extra large smile with a wink before scooting between her and Eri at the table. "Hey sexy lady."

"Hi…" Sango drifted off, gawking at her lap in confusion. Where was her witty retort today?

Miroku wondered the same thing, but this time let it slide. "How are you? PE killed me today."

Eri leaned forward, glancing across him, scrunching her eyebrows and mouthing to Kagome "What the frakk?"

She shrugged in response. Miroku and Sango ignored them. "Yeah… I found it kinda relaxing."

"Your parents are superheroes, aren't they?"

She blushed, laughing into her palm. "Don't be ridiculous. We're still just average humans."

"With super-average strength and endurance."

Gazing at him from under her bangs, she grinned. "I guess if you want to look at it that way…"

"Well, let's just say you had me on my toes yesterday. I haven't had a workout like that since… well, since, never. We should do it again sometime. Just… not tonight. I need another day to rest up." He winked again before bidding farewell and gliding off the seat and to the other side of the cafeteria.

Eri snatched up the empty seat with a scoot and a bump into Sango's hip. She stared intensely at her friend. "So, you two go on a date or something?"

Miroku plopped down next to his bet-making buddies with a proud smile. Inuyasha perked his ears. "Did you get laid or something?"

"Sango and I went on a date last night."

Zen choked on his burger.

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed. "Liar."

"Well…." Miroku's smile diminished with a shrug. "It was almost a date. I drove her to the restaurant and everything…"

"So did you sit in the car staring at the front door?"

He laughed. "No. She swore up and down after we left the gym that she would not eat dinner with me because it wasn't a date. I took her anyway. So she got out of the moving vehicle and walked the opposite direction."

Having cleared his windpipe of meat, Zen took another bite, just to choke on it from laughter.

Inuyasha dropped his forehead to the table with a vivacious cackle. "And you call that progress?"

"Heck yeah! She willingly got into my car. That's something."

**0000**

Kagome was bombarded by the three men vying for her attention. Inuyasha really wanted that study group with her; Hojo brought her a rose at lunch; Kouga remained on the creepy side of flattery.

"You know, wolves mate for life."

Kagome's whole face scrunched at the remark. "That would be a really cool factoid, Kouga, except since you are actually referring to yourself, it's disturbing. I'm not a wolf. I don't mate. I date."

Sango snorted, "I dunno, Kagome, I thought it was cute."

Kouga crossed his arms, glaring at the demon slayer. "I was trying to prove that loyalty runs deep in my veins. I would never chase the tail of another woman." He faced Kagome, grabbing her hand and cradling it in his, staring into her eyes. "In fact, I haven't thought of anyone else since I met you."

Hand over her mouth, Sango giggled quietly.

Kagome smiled nervously. "That's… rather sweet, Kouga…"

His whole face lit up in excitement. "I really want to take you to dinner sometime."

"Are you asking me on a legitimate date?" Her eyebrows perked up.

"Absolutely!"

She looked to her friend, both sharing an expression of impressed surprise. She looked back to Kouga. "Well, sure! It's about time you take me out before asking me to marry you."

His face flushed in embarrassment. "How about this weekend?"

Kagome shook her head. "I can only handle one date a weekend."

Sango snorted.

"Well you could always cancel with Hojo."

She yanked her hand free and fisted her hips. "No way!"

He raised his hands dejectedly. "Okay. Next Friday?"

"It's a date."

This round of luck for the other two boys didn't translate over for Inuyasha. Kagome refused to join his study group, despite his persistence. This irritated him somewhat, but Kagome avoided him at every turn so that his ill temperament couldn't be directed to her. However, he caught her at the locker at the end of the day.

"Since when did you become a ninja?" he snapped.

She sighed, whipping open the locker door. "Right about the time you become Don Juan."

He gawked at her with a huff. "Wow, are you kidding me? I'm trying to be nice to you!"

She slammed the door after retrieving her books. "Yeah, and just like you tried to warn me, you've gone right back to flirting with me!"

"At least I'm not dumping food on your face anymore!" He snatched the combo lock wheel and entered the combination.

"Sure, but now I feel like 'the other woman'!"

Swinging the metal door open until it thundered against the adjacent compartment, Inuyasha growled, "You are impossible to please! First you want us to stop fighting, and now you want me to stop being nice!"

"No, Inuyasha, I want you to stop acting like you still like me!"

He attacked the locker door, slamming it with such ferocity that it bounced right back open, and he had to beat it closed two more times before it latched. He spun around and pointed an accusatory finger in her face. "Maybe it's _you_ who needs to fess up about still liking _me_!"

"Ex_cuse_ me?"

"Come on, it's obvious! You're projecting!"

"It's not projection! It's deductive reasoning!"

"Oh that's funny coming from someone as _un_reasonable as _you_!"

She pulled her hair with a frustrated groan. "You are so infuriating!"

"Well you didn't like it when I played nice! What the hell do you want from me, woman?!"

"I want you to leave me alone! I want you to stop fighting Kouga over me! And stop acting jealous whenever I go on a date!"

His bottom lip puffed out with his gritted jaw as he growled lowly. His tone lowered from the shout to a rumble. "Fine. I'll stop being polite and civilized and compromising. From now on, you're on your own for everything." Shoving passed her, he stormed down the aisle to escape the battle.

Kagome sighed, rubbing her forehead. She didn't mean for them to fight. And she really didn't want him to leave her alone.

Defeated, she slumped into the passenger seat of Sango's car.

"What's wrong?"

"I made a stupid."

**0000**

All night the fight played back in Kagome's mind. Inuyasha was actually right: she _was_ projecting. For so long she pretended to hate him, because it made sense to hate him, and because she was hurt by him, but that didn't mean she didn't still like him. As she lay prone on her bed, staring out her window at the stars, she played out possible ways to apologize to him.

Sango's voice rang in her mind. "What do you have to apologize for?"

Kagome mumbled to herself, "For going off on him for no reason at all…"

But was she really sorry? It was hard for her to keep hanging out with Inuyasha as if nothing had happened. And when she looked at him, she just saw the times he flirted with Kikyou instead of her. It was painful for him to keep giving her those puppy eyes and sweet, excited smiles. Then again, she missed those more than she anticipated she would.

Now well past midnight, Kagome whipped out her phone and sent him a text: "I'm sorry Inuyasha. I was wrong."

She fell asleep waiting for a reply that never came.

**0000**

He ignored and avoided her for the next day. No more attempts to study together were made, and he lugged all of his books around so that he wouldn't have to make a trip to the locker. He came to a few classes late, and didn't even bother coming to French. He heard her coming yards away and always dashed out of sight before she could catch him. The tension caused Kagome so much distress that she couldn't focus on her studies the night before the History test.

Friday morning, Inuyasha stopped at the locker to drop off all of his books except for World History. Kagome met him there, standing silently next to him as he stacked his books. Noticing her, he stepped back, leaving the door open and dipping his gaze. He tried to grin politely, but it mostly just appeared as a sneer. He added lowly, "Good luck on the test," before scampering off.

Relieved that he finally simmered down, she smiled and called after him, "You too!"

In Trigonometry, he sat in the back of the room, reading from his World History book instead of taking notes. Kagome found this to be a rather good idea, and it inspired her to copy him. Sango shook her head, whispering to her friend, "All cramming does is confuse your brain. If you don't have it down by now, you're not gonna get it in a half hour."

Sighing, Kagome closed her book and set it on the floor. "When you're right, you're right." Nervous, Kagome tapped her pen incessantly on her notebook.

About eight minutes before class was over, Inuyasha stood with his bag and snuck out of the room. Perplexed, Kagome nudged Sango. "Where's _he_ going?"

She shrugged her response. "Maybe he's going to cram in a less distracting environment." Mr. Nosh didn't even bother stopping him or anything of the sort. This irritated her. "It's obscene what these teachers let him get away with. Why do they do that?"

Kagome shrugged. "Maybe cause they don't like our principal either?"

"Or they actually do like him, and therefore don't want to send his nemesis' son to visit." She chuckled.

Parting ways at the end of the hour, Kagome rushed to her next class, aiming to get there first to ask Ms. Norris a question. The hall was surprisingly empty as she rushed to the door, a few fellow classmates following close behind. Snatching the handle, she pulled the door open and took one step over the threshold before becoming instantly paralyzed. The students behind her bumped into her and too froze in the doorway.

Her eyes scanned the empty room with the rows of desks turned to face the center, which remained a wide open floor space from which Ms. Norris normally lectured. Now, however, on the floor kneeled Inuyasha, his back facing the doorway. At his knees a male's body lay prone, his face visible but with his right cheek submerged in a crimson puddle. The crimson liquid crept along the open floor, and clung to Inuyasha's pants, as well as his supine palms. His elbows rested on his thighs, mouth agape as he stared in horror at the corpse beneath him. It became apparent that the dead boy's arms were detached and resting inches away from their corresponding shoulder joints in their own puddles of blood. Gaping at the scene horrified for another second struck a recognition cord in Kagome.

It was Hojo.

She gasped shrilly, covering her mouth and struggling for oxygen.

Inuyasha whipped his head around, wide-eyed. "Kagome! I—It wasn't—I—" He fumbled for words, for control of his muscles, as he glanced back to Hojo's corpse.

"Inuyasha… what have you done?"

**0000END0000**

A/N: A special note to LiliaMcCool, in response to the review you wrote…. Be careful what you wish for =D

Okay so I've been pretty sick for a while, and have therefore been staying home from school a lot, which has given me time to finish these chapters. However, I have a ton of make-up work and I'll be graduating soon, so you may not hear from me until after May. Sorry guys… at least I'm warning you.

Plus I gave you this longer chapter so you wouldn't hate me too much.

Also PLEASE visit my DeviantArt: .com

It takes much less time for me to finish a sketch than it does to finish a chapter, and I have posted a few involving Locker Partners, so check them out! Thanks


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